Principal Controls Engineer, Advanced Energy Systems

AES; Houston (TX); On-site; USD 145,000 - 181,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, and vision coverage

Life insurance

401(k) eligibility

Paid time off

Job summary

AES is seeking a Principal Engineer, Advanced System Controls, to define, develop, validate, and deploy sophisticated control solutions for integrated energy systems. The role unites renewable generation, energy storage, fuel cells, and co-located loads into secure, testable architectures.

The position leads control philosophies, operating modes, and multi-resource dispatch, collaborating with vendors, AES project teams, and external partners to drive first-of-kind concepts to executable designs

Qualifications

• Master’s degree in controls engineering, electrical engineering, or related field.
• 8–12 years in utility-scale power systems controls, microgrids, or energy storage.
• Experience with data center integration and multi-resource dispatch.
• Deep understanding of grid-connected and islanded operation, grid-forming controls, and flexible interconnection.
• Experience with EMS, PPC, SCADA, and related control architectures.

Responsibilities

• Own and lead development of integrated controls architectures for multi-resource power systems.
• Define operating modes, sequence-of-events definitions, and interlocks.
• Coordinate with AES project engineering, grid integration, and commissioning teams.
• Develop data center load integration, fast dispatch algorithms, and EMS coordination.
• Lead EMT studies, real-time validation, lab testing, and field commissioning.
• Provide technical leadership and cross-functional reviews for control architectures.

Skills

Advanced power controls

Grid-forming/Grid-following

EMT/PSCAD analysis

Data center integration

Multi-resource dispatch

Technical leadership

Vendor coordination

Real-time controls

Education

Master’s degree in controls engineering

PhD preferred

Tools

PSCAD/EMT analysis

CHIL testing

PHIL testing

SCADA

EMS

PPC

Modbus

DNP3

IEC 61850

Job description

AES is seeking a Principal Engineer, Advanced System Controls, to define, develop, validate, and deploy sophisticated control solutions for integrated energy systems. The role unites renewable generation, energy storage, fuel cells, and co-located loads into secure, testable architectures.

The position leads control philosophies, operating modes, and multi-resource dispatch, collaborating with vendors, AES project teams, and external partners to drive first-of-kind concepts to executable designs