Sr. Electrical Engineer - Power Systems

Arbor Energy; El Segundo (CA); On-site; USD 165,000 - 185,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Pre-IPO stock options

Health insurance

Unlimited PTO

401(k)

Annual learning stipend

HSA with matching

Job summary

Arbor Energy is seeking a Senior Electrical Engineer – Power Systems in California to own the electrical architecture of multi-unit supercritical CO₂ power plants, from concept to interconnection and commissioning. You will design, specify, procure, and bring up equipment, partnering with turbomachinery, controls, process, and test teams.

As the first electrical engineer, you will shape plant architectures for 10–50 MW units, both grid-tied and islanded, guiding third-party reviews and ensuring

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or related field.
• 8+ years of experience in power-generation, industrial, or utility electrical systems.
• Hands-on commissioning or startup experience with a generating plant or large industrial electrical system.
• Working fluency in generator protection, excitation, and synchronization, and in power system studies (load flow, short circuit, arc flash, motor starting, coordination).

Responsibilities

• Own the power system architecture for multi-unit grid-tied plants and islanded configurations.
• Lead generator, excitation, synchronization, and load-sharing design.
• Develop the protection philosophy and coordination strategy for generators, transformers, switchgear, and motors.
• Own utility interconnection from feasibility to interconnection agreement and compliance.
• Perform load-flow, short-circuit, arc-flash, motor-starting, and transient stability studies.
• Specify and procure major electrical equipment and manage vendor reviews and FATs.
• Lead electrical commissioning through first fire, full-speed no-load, and synchronization.

Job description

At Arbor Energy & Resources Corporation ("Arbor Energy"), we’re creating technology to power our lives while protecting the planet that sustains them. Our advanced power systems deliver clean, reliable baseload electricity with zero operating emissions—modular, fuel-flexible, and engineered for the realities of today’s energy demand. At the core is a supercritical CO₂ turbine with integrated carbon capture, designed to bring carbon-neutral power online quickly at meaningful scale.

Our team includes aerospace engineers, combustion experts, and systems thinkers with a shared goal: to build technology worthy of the world we want to live in. While many of us began our journeys looking to the stars, we’re applying that expertise here at home to deliver dependable, emission-free baseload power and a future of lasting abundance.

If you share our values and are drawn to rigorous work with lasting impact, we’d love to learn more about you. Come build what the future will run on.

Steward our planet: We build for tomorrow, ensuring every bolt we tighten and every hand we lend leaves our environment stronger than we found it.

Lead with Love: We champion the success of our people, partners, and planet, nurturing excellence through camaraderie and rigor.

Explore the Uncharted: We embrace the unknown with curiosity, using courage and discipline to transform uncertainty into opportunity.

Role Overview

We're looking for a Senior Electrical Engineer – Power Systems to own the electrical architecture of Arbor's supercritical CO₂ power plants—from the first conceptual one-line through generator selection, synchronization and protection design, utility interconnection, procurement, installation, and first synchronization to the grid. As Arbor's first electrical engineer, you will set the architecture for multi-unit plants of 10–50 MW turbine-generators, both grid-tied at transmission level and in islanded behind-the-meter configurations. This is a hands-on role: you will design, specify, procure, and commission the equipment yourself, and bring in third-party engineering when the schedule demands more hands, not because the work is outside your reach. You'll partner closely with turbomachinery, controls, process, and test engineers in a fast-paced, first-of-a-kind hardware environment, building the electrical discipline that delivers carbon-neutral baseload power.

Responsibilities

• Own the power system architecture for multi-unit grid-tied plants and islanded microgrid configurations: single-line diagrams, generator step-up and medium-voltage distribution topology, auxiliary power, and DC/UPS systems.
• Lead generator, excitation, synchronization, and load-sharing design, including system behavior during load steps, faults, breaker operations, motor starting, and loss-of-generation events.
• Develop the protection philosophy and coordination strategy for generators, transformers, medium-voltage switchgear, and large motors, and produce or review relay settings and time-current coordination.
• Own utility interconnection from feasibility screening through interconnection agreement and compliance, including NERC MOD-026/027 and PRC-019/024 and IEEE 2800 requirements.
• Perform and direct load-flow, short-circuit, arc-flash, motor-starting, and transient stability studies in ETAP, PSCAD, PSS®E, or equivalent.
• Specify and procure major electrical equipment—generators, step-up transformers, switchgear, medium-voltage motors and VFDs, MCCs, and UPS—and manage vendor design reviews, factory acceptance tests, and installation.
• Own or direct hazardous-area classification, grounding, and lightning protection design for facilities handling natural gas, oxygen, and high-pressure CO₂.
• Define scope for and review third-party electrical engineering when additional capacity is needed, and lead electrical commissioning through first fire, full-speed no-load, and synchronization.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or related engineering field.
• 8+ years of experience in power-generation, industrial, or utility electrical systems, including medium-voltage generation and distribution and transmission-level interconnection.
• Hands-on commissioning or startup experience with a generating plant or large industrial electrical system.
• Demonstrated ability to take electrical equipment from concept through specification, procurement, installation, and energization.
• Working fluency in generator protection, excitation, and synchronization, and in power system studies (load flow, short circuit, arc flash, motor starting, coordination) using ETAP, SKM, PSCAD, or equivalent.
• Knowledge of NEC, NFPA 70E, NESC, IEEE, and NERC standards applicable to generating facilities.
• Proven ability to own technical development of complex hardware from concept through validation in fast-paced settings.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with islanded power systems, load shedding, and generator paralleling in oil & gas, LNG, industrial-gas, or microgrid applications.
• Gas-turbine or reciprocating-engine generator package experience, including static excitation, generator protection panels, and neutral grounding.
• Utility interconnection studies and RTO/ISO or CAISO/WECC process experience.
• Advanced degree (M.S.) in Electrical Engineering with a power systems emphasis.
• Background in startup environments or first-of-a-kind hardware development.
• Pre-IPO stock options
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance (Arbor covers 90% for employees)
• Basic life insurance fully covered
• Health savings account (HSA) with matching
• Flexible savings account (FSA)
• Unlimited PTO
• 12+ company holidays, including Earth Day!
• 401(k)
• Annual learning and development stipend
• And more!

Base Pay: $165,000 - $185,000 USD/year. The salary is subject to the applicant's skills, qualifications, experience, and geographic location.

Our Commitment

Arbor Energy is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, religion, national origin, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, marital or veteran status, disability, or any other protected characteristic under applicable law. Solving global energy challenges requires a wide range of perspectives and experiences, and we are committed to building a team that reflects the world we serve.

Our hiring process is designed to be accessible, fair, and focused on the work that matters most for this role. Reasonable accommodations are available throughout the hiring process and employment—please let us know if you need one.