Senior Plant Engineer: Reliability & Performance Champion

American Electric Power; Pittsburg (TX); On-site; USD 88,000 - 129,000; Full time

Job summary

American Electric Power is seeking a Plant Engineer to provide technical leadership for safe, reliable, and efficient operation of a power plant. You will oversee performance monitoring, troubleshooting, configuration control, and regulatory compliance while partnering with operations, maintenance, vendors, and regulators.

Responsibilities include diagnosing issues, supporting startups/shutdowns, and leading data-driven improvements to heat rate and availability.

Qualifications

• ABET-accredited engineering degree required; two+ years related engineering experience or military equivalent.
• Master's degree may allow entry at higher level; ABET accreditation preferred.
• P.E. license preferred for advanced levels.

Responsibilities

• Provide engineering support and technical execution for plant operations and maintenance by diagnosing issues, supporting startups and shutdowns, and implementing timely corrective actions.
• Perform structured troubleshooting and root cause analysis for equipment failures and performance issues; develop practical solutions to improve reliability and reduce recurrence.
• Monitor and analyze plant data (turbine and auxiliary systems) to identify gaps and opportunities affecting availability, heat rate, and efficiency.
• Support reliability and condition monitoring programs (vibration analysis, thermography, oil analysis, controls diagnostics) and ensure proper data interpretation.
• Maintain configuration control and technical documentation; ensure accuracy and compliance with plant standards.
• Coordinate and support capital projects, modifications, and maintenance with contractors and vendors; ensure safe completion and compliance with engineering requirements.
• Support regulatory compliance (NERC, pressure systems) with monitoring, documentation, and audits.

Skills

Troubleshooting

Root cause analysis

Equipment reliability

Plant performance

Control systems

Instrumentation

Performance monitoring

MS Office

Technical reporting

Education

ABET-accredited engineering degree

Professional Engineer (P.E.) license preferred

Tools

Control systems software

Job description

American Electric Power is seeking a Plant Engineer to provide technical leadership for safe, reliable, and efficient operation of a power plant. You will oversee performance monitoring, troubleshooting, configuration control, and regulatory compliance while partnering with operations, maintenance, vendors, and regulators.

Responsibilities include diagnosing issues, supporting startups/shutdowns, and leading data-driven improvements to heat rate and availability.