Sr. Counsel, Datacenter Development & Infrastructure

SpaceX; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

SpaceX is seeking a Sr. Counsel to lead legal matters around datacenter development and critical infrastructure in Bastrop, TX. You will negotiate land acquisitions, PPAs, easements, and interconnection agreements, while guiding regulatory reviews and permitting across municipal, state, and federal levels.

Experience with land use, real estate, energy contracts, and utility infrastructure is highly valued. This role requires on-site presence, willingness to travel, and a strong bar admission in

Qualifications

• JD or foreign equivalent from an ABA-accredited law school.
• Active licensed attorney.
• 7+ years of legal experience.

Responsibilities

• Provide expert legal guidance on developing large-scale datacenter infrastructure and related facilities.
• Draft and negotiate land purchases, easements, leases, PPAs, interconnection, and other real estate/transaction documents.
• Advise on zoning, permitting, environmental reviews, and utility interconnections at multiple government levels.
• Collaborate with stakeholders to brief regulators and authorities on applicable matters.
• Negotiate complex EPC contracts, vendor/supply agreements, and spaceport-related agreements.

Skills

Legal experience

Licensed attorney

Willingness to travel

Education

JD or foreign equivalent

Job description

Sr. Counsel, Datacenter Development & Infrastructure

Bastrop, TX

SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of enabling human life on Mars.

SR. COUNSEL, DATACENTER DEVELOPMENT & INFRASTRUCTURE

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Provide expert legal guidance on matters related to developing large-scale datacenter infrastructure and supporting utilities — acquisition and development of land, construction of datacenters and associated facilities, on-site power generation (including gas turbines and backup systems), electrical transmission and distribution infrastructure, gas pipelines and fuel supply systems, water supply and wastewater treatment (especially for high-density cooling), communications/fiber infrastructure, transportation access, and worker accommodations. This role also supports spaceport and other advanced critical infrastructure development projects as needed
• Draft and negotiate land purchases, easements (including power line, gas pipeline, and utility rights-of-way), rights-of-way, leases, power purchase agreements (PPAs), interconnection agreements, fuel supply contracts, pipeline capacity agreements, and other real estate and commercial transaction documents required to bring datacenter and infrastructure projects fully online
• Advise on municipal, county, State, and Federal requirements related to zoning, building and construction permitting, environmental reviews, power generation and utility interconnections, gas pipeline development and safety, water rights and wastewater treatment, air permitting for turbines/generation, and related infrastructure for datacenters and large industrial projects
• Collaborate with internal stakeholders to brief county, State, and Federal regulators on applicable matters, including public utility commissions, environmental agencies, pipeline safety regulators, and permitting authorities
• Negotiate complex construction contracts, engineering-procurement-construction (EPC) agreements, vendor and supply contracts related to datacenter buildout, power generation facilities (turbines, substations, switchgear), utility infrastructure (gas pipelines, high-voltage power lines, water systems), fuel procurement and delivery, and spaceport development

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

• JD or foreign equivalent from an ABA-accredited law school
• Active licensed attorney
• 7+ years of legal experience

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:

• 7+ years of experience with real estate, land use, and/or large-scale power and utility infrastructure development issues, preferably including hyperscale datacenter or major industrial project development
• Knowledge and/or experience with natural gas project development, power generation contracts and operations (including on-site turbine generation), gas pipeline and fuel supply agreements, power purchase agreements (PPAs), utility interconnection processes, transmission planning, and mineral rights or surface use agreements
• Familiarity with Texas regulatory environment, including Public Utility Commission requirements, Texas Railroad Commission rules for oil and gas operations, and air/water permitting for power generation facilities is highly desirable

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS

• Must be admitted to the bar, in good standing, in at least one U.S. state
• Willingness to travel occasionally to project sites and different offices for a week at a time
• Must be willing to work extended hours and/or weekends as needed
• This position is based in Bastrop, TX and requires being onsite – remote work not considered
• To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder), (iii) Refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, or (iv) Asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here .

SpaceX is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with SpaceX is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

Applicants wishing to view a copy of SpaceX’s Affectionate Action Plan for veterans and individuals with disabilities, or applicants requiring reasonable accommodation to the application/interview process should reach out to [e-mail].

Voluntary Self-Identification

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self-identification survey.Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiringprocess or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in aconfidential file.

As set forth in SpaceX’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy,we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection.As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measurethe effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categoriesis as follows:

A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.