Power Plant Field Engineer: Commissioning & Operations

SpaceX; Texas, United States; On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

SpaceX is seeking a Power Plant Engineer to own the design, build, and operations of a full power plant, including gas turbines and balance‑of‑plant systems. You will lead commissioning in the control room at startup and troubleshoot in the field to ensure reliable operation.

Applicants should have a Bachelor's in Mechanical or Electrical Engineering and 2+ years’ hands‑on gas turbine experience in commissioning, operations, or maintenance.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical or Electrical Engineering or related field.
• 2+ years of hands‑on experience with utility‑scale gas turbines in commissioning, operations, or maintenance.

Responsibilities

• Support the full lifecycle of gas turbine power generation assets — installation, commissioning, startup, operations, and long‑term maintenance.
• Lead or support commissioning activities including combustion tuning, control system checkout, protective relay testing, and performance/reliability run verification.
• Own root‑cause analysis and corrective action for turbine trips, forced outages, and performance degradation; drive fixes that prevent recurrence.
• Develop and refine operating procedures, startup/shutdown sequences, and abnormal operating condition playbooks.
• Interface directly with OEMs on warranty issues, LTSA scope, outage planning, and technical issues.
• Plan and execute major/minor inspections, hot gas path outages, and combustion inspections in line with OEM maintenance intervals.
• Analyze turbine performance data to identify efficiency losses and recommend corrective action.
• Coordinate with balance‑of‑plant teams to ensure integrated performance.
• Build and maintain relationships with EPC contractors during construction handoff to ensure a clean transition to operation.
• Develop spare parts strategy, critical spares inventory, and maintenance budgets.

Skills

Gas turbines

P&IDs

DCS platforms

LTSA knowledge

RCA/5-Why

Field commissioning

BOP systems

CAD software

Troubleshooting

Grid interconnect knowledge

Education

Bachelor's in Mechanical or Electrical Engineering

Tools

SOLIDWORKS

Siemens NX

Mark VIe

SPPA-T3000

Job description

SpaceX is seeking a Power Plant Engineer to own the design, build, and operations of a full power plant, including gas turbines and balance‑of‑plant systems. You will lead commissioning in the control room at startup and troubleshoot in the field to ensure reliable operation.

Applicants should have a Bachelor's in Mechanical or Electrical Engineering and 2+ years’ hands‑on gas turbine experience in commissioning, operations, or maintenance.