Senior Mechanical Engineer

Fervo Energy Co.; Oakland, Northern (CA, KY); Hybrid; USD 115,000 - 182,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Life Insurance

Disability insurance

Flexible PTO

Parental leave

Stock options

Bonus program

401(k) match

Job summary

Fervo Energy is seeking a Senior Mechanical Engineer to be a technical leader in the design and optimization of mechanical systems for Fervo’s power plants. You will apply first-principles analysis to develop high-performance, cost-effective plant designs while mentoring junior engineers.

You will report to the Mechanical Engineering Manager and drive standardization across projects, collaborating with process, electrical, reservoir, and drilling teams.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in mechanical engineering in large capital projects.
• Proven track record leading projects & design through fabrication and testing.
• Deep expertise in thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and structural mechanics.
• Strong communication and leadership skills; ability to translate technical complexity into clear decisions.

Responsibilities

• Own design, analysis, and specification of mechanical systems and equipment for power generation.
• Conduct first-principles tradeoffs across mechanical and thermal systems to optimize performance.
• Identify opportunities to simplify, accelerate, and standardize mechanical designs.
• Support procurement with vendor specifications for power plant designs.
• Mentor junior engineers and collaborate across disciplines to drive integrated solutions.

Skills

Thermodynamics

Fluid mechanics

Structural mechanics

Leadership

Mentoring

Education

B.S. or M.S. in Mechanical Engineering or related discipline

Job description

As aSenior Mechanical Engineer,you will be a technical leader in the design and optimization of mechanical systems for Fervo’s innovative power plants.

Fervo is working to build the most cost-effective, repeatable geothermal power plants in the world. Joining Fervo’s PowerCo engineering team means solving frontier technical problems with immediate real-world impact, accelerating the clean energy transition and reinventing the way infrastructure is built.

We are seeking engineers who are excited by Fervo’s mission, the opportunity to drive meaningful and impactful innovation, and the prospect of maintaining extreme ownership over the cost and constructability implications of their designs, knowing that each decision they make impacts the speed and scale of Fervo’s mission.

Description

As aSenior Mechanical Engineer,you will be a technical leader in the design and optimization of mechanical systems for Fervo’s innovative power plants. You will apply advanced engineering judgment and first-principles analysis to develop high-performance, cost-effective plant designs, while mentoring junior engineers and influencing cross-disciplinary decision-making. As Fervo transitions from first-of-a-kind projects to scaling deployment of its plants, you will play a key role in driving standardization and efficiency improvements across projects. You will report to the Mechanical Engineering Manager.

Responsibilities

Technical and Execution Leadership

• Own specification generation, design, and analysis of mechanical systems, components, and equipment for power generation and surface facilities
• Drive first-principles tradeoff analysis across mechanical and thermal systems to optimize plant performance
• Identify opportunities to simplify, accelerate, and standardize mechanical designs while maintaining technical excellence and reliability
• Inform and support procurement efforts relating to mechanical equipment, systems, and vendor specifications for power plant designs

Team and Culture

• Demonstrate extreme ownership by taking responsibility for cost, safety, and constructability in addition to design
• Work with urgency and resilience, embracing rapid iteration and maintaining high performance under pressure
• Collaborate closely across disciplines (process, electrical, reservoir, drilling) as well as with external partners to drive integrated solutions
• Contribute to a culture of technical excellence and accountability, modeling the values that define a world-class engineering team
• Act as a mentor to junior engineers and help in their development

Qualifications

• B.S. or M.S. in Mechanical Engineering or related discipline
• 8+ years of experience in mechanical engineering in large capital projects
• Proven track record leading projects & design through fabrication and testing
• Deep expertise in thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and structural mechanics
• Strong communication and leadership skills; ability to translate technical complexity into clear decisions

Preferred Qualifications

• R&D mechanical engineering design experience is a strong plus

Location

Fervo Energy has offices in Houston, TX, Golden, CO, Reno, NV, Oakland, CA, and Salt Lake City, UT. This position will be eligible for some hybrid work flexibility, but regular in-office presence at a the Oakland, California office will be required.

Fervo provides a comprehensive suite of benefits including medical, dental, vision, life, short-term and long-term disability, flexible paid time off, and paid parental leave. Additionally, Fervo offers an incentive stock options program, a bonus incentive program, and a 401(k) plan with an employer match.

Fervo Energy is providing the compensation range and general description of other compensation and benefits that the company in good faith believes it might pay and/or offer for this position based on the successful applicant’s education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities in addition to internal equity and geographic location. Expected Salary: $115,000 – $182,000 based on California locality and dependent on experience, pay in other locations may vary.

Fervo Energy reserves the right to ultimately pay more or less than the posted range and offer other compensation, depending on circumstances not related to an applicant’s sex or other status protected by local, state, or federal law.

Fervo Energy commercializes technology to own, develop, and operate geothermal assets as the dispatchable foundation to a 100% clean energy future. As a 24/7, reliable clean energy resource, geothermal energy has a major role to play in the future electric grid and Fervo Energy’s key innovations bring a full suite of modern technology to make geothermal cost competitive. Fervo’s innovations include technologies such as advanced computational models, horizontal drilling, and distributed fiber optic sensing that we have developed with partners including Schlumberger, ARPA-E, and the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. Fervo is supported through Cyclotron Road, the Department of Energy, Stanford University, and Breakthrough Energy Ventures.

Fervo Energy is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, creed, gender, religion, marital status, registered domestic partner status, age, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, sex, genetic information, sexual orientation, military and veteran status or any other consideration made unlawful by federal, state, or local laws. It also prohibits unlawful discrimination based on the perception that anyone has any of those characteristics or is associated with a person who has or is perceived as having any of those characteristics.