Senior Gas Plant Manager

Howard Energy Partners; Texas; On-site; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

Howard Energy Partners in West Texas seeks a Senior Gas Plant Manager to oversee a full-scale natural gas processing facility, including amine treating, dehydration, and cryogenic NGL recovery. The role sets strategic direction and leads a multidisciplinary team of operations, maintenance, and technical staff, ensuring safety, reliability, and regulatory compliance.

You will drive throughput, product quality, and margins, manage operating and capital budgets, and partner with commercial,

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Chemical, Mechanical, or Petroleum Engineering or related field.
• 12+ years in natural gas processing, midstream, or related hydrocarbon processing.
• 5+ years in a supervisory/management role with operations and maintenance leadership.
• Hands-on experience with cryogenic NGL recovery plants, including amine treating, dehydration, compression.
• Experience with OSHA PSM and environmental permit requirements.
• Experience developing and managing operating and capital budgets.
• Experience leading incident investigations and emergency response.
• 3+ years leadership in a full-scale processing facility as Plant Manager or similar.
• Experience with fractionation, NGL product handling, multi-train operations preferred.
• Experience leading major turnarounds, capital projects, plant expansions preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead safety culture and ensure OSHA PSM compliance.
• Oversee regulatory compliance with air, water, waste, and PHMSA permits.
• Direct plant operations to meet throughput and product quality.
• Develop operating and capital budgets; control costs.
• Oversee maintenance strategy and asset integrity.
• Develop workforce; plan training and succession.
• Coordinate with commercial, engineering, and EHS groups.
• Lead incident investigations and root-cause analyses.
• Manage turnarounds and capital projects.

Skills

Gas processing operations

Leadership

Budget management

Regulatory compliance

Safety culture

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Chemical/Mechanical/Petroleum Engineering

12+ years in natural gas processing

5+ years supervisory/management

Tools

DCS/SCADA systems

PHMSA regulatory knowledge

Job description

West Texas
338 RM 652 East
Orla, TX 79770, USA

Description

Job Summary:

The Senior Gas Plant Manager leads the safe, reliable, and profitable operation of a full-scale natural gas processing facility, including inlet compression, amine treating, dehydration, cryogenic NGL recovery, fractionation, and residue compression. This role sets the plant’s strategic and operational direction and leads a multidisciplinary team of operations, maintenance, and technical staff. Responsibilities include ensuring compliance with environmental, PSM, and DOT/PHMSA regulations, driving recovery efficiency and plant up time, and managing operating and capital budgets. The manager works closely with commercial, gathering, and engineering groups to optimize throughput, product quality, and margins. They also champion a strong safety culture, workforce development, and continuous improvement across the facility.

Duties/Responsibilities:

Safety and Culture

• Lead and sustain a strong safety culture. Ensure compliance with company safety programs, OSHA Process Safety Management, and incident prevention, investigation, and corrective action processes.

Regulatory and Environmental Compliance

• Ensure the facility operates within all permits and regulatory requirements, including air, water, waste, PSM, DOT/PHMSA, and applicable FERC/Standards of Conduct obligations. Maintain audit readiness.

Operational Performance

• Direct plant operations to meet throughput, NGL recovery, product quality, and residue gas specifications. Optimize processing efficiency and respond to changing inlet conditions.

Reliability and Asset Integrity

• Oversee maintenance strategy, mechanical integrity, and turnaround planning to maximize uptime and extend asset life.
• Develop and manage operating and capital budgets. Control costs, and identify and execute projects that improve margins and plant value.

Leadership and Workforce Development

• Lead, staff, and develop the plant team. Set clear expectations, conduct performance evaluations, plan for succession, and ensure training and qualification requirements are met.

Cross-Functional Coordination

• Partner with commercial, gathering, engineering, EHS, and pipeline groups to align plant operations with business objectives and customer commitments.
• Maintain and lead the facility’s emergency response capability, including plans, drills, and coordination with local responders and agencies.
• Drive performance tracking, root-cause analysis, and adoption of best practices and technology to improve safety, efficiency, and reliability.

Stakeholder and Community Relations

• Represent the facility with regulators, landowners, contractors, and the local community. Protect the company’s reputation and license to operate.

Performs other related duties as assigned.

Required Skills/Abilities:

Technical

• Thorough knowledge of gas processing operations, including compression, amine treating, dehydration, cryogenic NGL recovery, fractionation, and residue systems.
• Ability to interpret P&IDs, process data, and performance metrics to diagnose problems and optimize operations.
• Working knowledge of maintenance and reliability practices, mechanical integrity programs, and turnaround execution.
• Familiarity with plant control systems (DCS/SCADA) and safety instrumented systems.

Regulatory and Safety

• Strong understanding of OSHA PSM, EPA air and environmental regulations, DOT/PHMSA requirements, and applicable FERC obligations.
• Ability to lead incident investigations and root-cause analyses, and to carry corrective actions through to completion.
• Knowledge of emergency response planning and incident command.

Leadership

• Ability to lead, motivate, and develop a multidisciplinary workforce across operations, maintenance, and technical roles.
• Skill in setting expectations, managing performance, and building accountability.
• Ability to make sound decisions under pressure, including during upsets and emergencies.

Business and Financial

• Experience developing and managing operating and capital budgets.
• Ability to evaluate project economics and prioritize investments by safety, reliability, and margin impact.
• Understanding of how plant performance affects commercial results and contracts.

Communication and Collaboration

• Strong written and verbal communication with all levels, from field staff to executives.
• Ability to work effectively with commercial, engineering, pipeline, and EHS groups.
• Skill in representing the company with regulators, landowners, contractors, and the community.

Personal Abilities

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities in a dynamic 24/7 operating environment.
• Commitment to integrity, safety, and continuous improvement.

Education and Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in Chemical, Mechanical, or Petroleum Engineering, or a related technical field. An equivalent combination of education and progressive gas processing experience may substitute
• 12 or more years of experience in natural gas processing, midstream, or a closely related hydrocarbon processing industry such as refining or petrochemicals.
• 5 or more years in a supervisory or management role, including direct leadership of operations and maintenance personnel.
• Hands‑on experience with cryogenic NGL recovery plants, including amine treating, dehydration, compression, and expander‑based processing.
• Demonstrated experience operating under OSHA PSM and environmental permit requirements, including audits, PHAs, and management of change (MOC).
• Experience developing and managing operating and capital budgets.
• Experience leading incident investigations and emergency response.
• Three (3) or more years of leadership experience in a full‑scale processing facility as a Plant Manager, Assistant Plant Manager, Operations Manager, or similar role preferred.
• Experience with fractionation, NGL product handling, and multi‑train plant operations preferred.
• Experience leading major turnarounds, capital projects, plant expansions, tie‑ins, and startup activities preferred.
• Experience in a unionized and/or multi‑site operating environment preferred.
• Knowledge of commercial processing operations, including contracts, plant balancing, and product marketing interfaces preferred.
• Experience with interstate pipeline affiliates and FERC Standards of Conduct compliance preferred.

Certifications:

• None required

Physical Demands and Hazard for Field Employees:

This position may require occasional travel to remote sites, potential exposure to flammable material, adherence to safety protocols, compliance with operating regulations, and will require rigorous physical demands.

Thank you for your interest in Howard Energy Partners, an equal opportunity employer. If you need additional information, have questions, or need accommodations, please reach out to the Human Resources department at 210-298-2222.

Qualifications

Skills

Required

Problem solving

Expert

Team Management

Advanced

Advanced

Safety

Expert

Leadership

Expert

Behaviors

Required

Leader

Inspires teammates to follow them

Enthusiastic

Shows intense and eager enjoyment and interest

Functional Expert

Considered a thought leader on a subject

Dedicated

Devoted to a task or purpose with loyalty or integrity

Detail Oriented

Capable of carrying out a given task with all details necessary to get the task done well

Education

Preferred

Bachelors or better.

Experience

Preferred

Hands‑on experience with cryogenic NGL recovery plants, including amine treating, dehydration, compression, and expander‑based processing

5 years

5+ years in a supervisory or management role with direct leadership of operations and maintenance personnel

12 years

12+ years of experience in natural gas processing, midstream, refining, petrochemicals, or a related hydrocarbon processing industry

Equal Opportunity Employer
This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws.For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.