Senior Director of Development, Southwest (Solar + Battery Storage)

Atlas NextWave; United States; Remote; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Atlas NextWave is seeking a Senior Director of Development for the Southwest to own and drive utility-scale solar, battery storage, and hybrid projects from early development through PPA execution. This remote role prioritizes candidates in AZ, NM, CA, NV, or CO with Southwest experience.

You will manage multi-disciplinary teams, align development activities with commercial objectives, and navigate regulatory and interconnection processes to bring projects to market.

Qualifications

• 6–15+ years of experience in renewable energy or related development.
• Proven track record in utility-scale solar or storage projects in the U.S.
• Expertise in pre-PPA development: land control, permitting, interconnection, and offtake.
• Ability to lead cross-functional teams and deliver milestones to commercial readiness.
• Strong commercial and financial acumen with knowledge of U.S. power markets.

Responsibilities

• Lead a portfolio of utility-scale solar, storage, and hybrid projects through PPA execution.
• Develop and implement project strategies, budgets, and milestones for commercial readiness.
• Coordinate site control, permitting, interconnection, and environmental diligence.
• Collaborate with Origination, Engineering, and Commercial teams to optimize opportunities.
• Identify development risks and ensure smooth handover to execution post-PPA.

Skills

Renewable energy development

PPA negotiations

Cross-functional leadership

Project management

Job description

Senior Director of Development, Southwest (Solar + Battery Storage)

Ref#: J017721_1793369691

Type of work

Permanent

Country

United States

Job description

Senior Director of Project Development (Solar & Battery Storage) - Southwest Location: Remote - candidates based in Arizona, New Mexico, California, Nevada, or Colorado are preferred. Other locations will be considered for canidates with southwest experience.

I'm partnering with a rapidly growing global renewable energy Independent Power Producer (IPP) with a 20GW utility-scale development pipeline across the United States. They are looking for an experienced renewable energy professional to lead the development of utility-scale solar, battery energy storage, and hybrid projects across the Southwest.

This is an exciting opportunity for a hands‑on developer to take ownership of projects from early‑to mid‑stage development through PPA execution, working closely with senior leadership, Project Engineering, and Origination to bring commercially viable renewable energy projects to market.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead a portfolio of utility‑scale solar, battery energy storage, and hybrid projects, advancing opportunities from early‑to mid‑stage development through PPA execution.
• Develop and execute project strategies, managing budgets, milestones, and critical development activities to achieve commercial readiness.
• Coordinate key development workstreams, including site control, land acquisition, permitting, environmental diligence, interconnection, transmission, and community engagement.
• Partner with Origination and Project Engineering to optimize project design, assess commercial opportunities, and position projects for utility RFPs, bilateral negotiations, and corporate or data center offtake.
• Identify and mitigate development risks, evaluate project economics and commercial trade‑offs, and ensure a smooth handover to the execution team following PPA execution.

Key Requirements

• Approximately 6-15+ years of experience in renewable energy, power, infrastructure, or related project development, with a proven track record of developing utility‑scale projects in the U.S.
• Significant experience with utility‑scale solar and/or battery energy storage projects; experience with hybrid solar and storage projects is highly desirable.
• Strong understanding of pre‑PPA development, including land and site control, permitting, environmental diligence, interconnection, transmission, project economics, and offtake strategy.
• Demonstrated ability to independently manage complex development projects, lead cross-functional teams, and drive critical milestones through to successful commercial outcomes.
• Strong commercial and financial acumen, with regional knowledge of U.S. power markets, utility and regulatory environments, interconnection processes, and the ability to assess and manage development risks.