Substation Commissioning Manager

Equagen; North Carolina; On-site; USD 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, dental, and vision insurance

401(k) plan

Paid time off

Job summary

Equagen Engineers PC is seeking a Substation Commissioning Manager to lead testing, commissioning, and energization of high- and medium-voltage substations. You will oversee planning, field execution, and turnover with strong focus on protective relays and SCADA integration.

You will mentor engineers and technicians, manage safety and scheduling, and collaborate with owners, utilities, EPCs, and equipment manufacturers. Willingness to travel and lead multiple projects is required.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or related field; equivalent experience considered.
• At least 8 years of experience in substation testing, protection and control, including 3 years leading field teams.
• Experience commissioning HV/MV substations through energization and turnover.
• Strong understanding of protective relaying, control circuits, testing practices.
• Able to interpret one-line diagrams, AC/DC schematics, and relay logic.
• Hands-on experience with protective relay test equipment and diagnostic instruments.
• Willingness to travel extensively and support outages and extended schedules.
• Valid driver’s license.

Responsibilities

• Develop commissioning plans, test procedures, schedules, staffing, and budgets.
• Define testing boundaries, energization prerequisites, and turnover requirements.
• Coordinate commissioning with owners, utilities, EPCs, equipment manufacturers, and field teams.
• Manage multiple projects, track progress, resolve field issues, and report constraints.
• Review scope, prepare estimates, and authorize changes as needed.
• Lead testing and commissioning of power transformers, switchgear, and protection schemes.
• Coordinate end-to-end protection testing including line differential and comms-based schemes.
• Oversee AC/DC system checks, battery testing, and SCADA integration.
• Review drawings, relay settings, test results, and resolve discrepancies.
• Support troubleshooting of protection, control, and communications.

Skills

Leadership

Client communication

Scheduling

Team mentoring

Field execution

Travel readiness

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or related field

Professional Engineer license (preferred)

Tools

Protective relay test equipment

SEL relays

OMICRON/Doble/Megger test systems

Job description

Equagen Engineers PC is seeking a Substation Commissioning Manager to lead testing, commissioning, and energization activities for high- and medium-voltage substations. Projects include utility substations, renewable energy interconnections, battery energy storage systems, and industrial power facilities.

This role combines technical leadership, field execution, team management, and client coordination. The successful candidate will oversee commissioning from planning through final turnover, ensuring that equipment, protection schemes, and control systems are tested thoroughly and ready for safe energization.

Key Responsibilities

Commissioning Planning and Project Execution

• Develop commissioning plans, test procedures, schedules, staffing plans, and project budgets.
• Define testing boundaries, equipment readiness requirements, energization prerequisites, and turnover requirements.
• Coordinate commissioning activities with owners, utilities, EPC contractors, equipment manufacturers, construction teams, and engineering teams.
• Manage multiple projects, track progress, resolve field issues, and communicate schedule or resource constraints.
• Review project scope, prepare commissioning estimates, and identify changes requiring additional authorization.

Technical Leadership

• Lead testing and commissioning of power transformers, circuit breakers, switchgear, disconnect switches, instrument transformers, surge arresters, grounding systems, and station service systems.
• Oversee protective relay testing, settings verification, trip and close circuit checks, interlock verification, and protection scheme functional testing.
• Direct commissioning of bus, transformer, feeder, line, breaker failure, and other applicable protection schemes.
• Coordinate end-to-end protection testing, including line differential and communication-assisted schemes.
• Oversee AC/DC system checks, battery and charger testing, CT/PT circuit verification, and equipment control checks.
• Manage SCADA point-to-point testing, alarm verification, remote control checks, and integration with utility or owner control centers.
• Review drawings, relay settings, equipment manuals, and test results to identify discrepancies and coordinate resolution.
• Support troubleshooting of protection, control, communications, and primary equipment issues.

Safety and Energization

• Lead commissioning safety planning, job briefings, and coordination of work around energized equipment.
• Ensure compliance with project safety procedures, electrical safe work practices, lockout/tagout requirements, and applicable switching protocols.
• Coordinate switching plans and energization sequences with the owner’s authorized operating personnel.
• Confirm completion of required testing, closure or formal acceptance of outstanding issues, and documented authorization before energization.
• Direct commissioning support during initial energization, loading, and post-energization checks.

Team Management and Development

• Supervise commissioning engineers, relay technicians, electrical testing technicians, and subcontractors.
• Assign work based on qualifications, project requirements, and site conditions.
• Mentor staff in testing methods, troubleshooting, documentation, and safe field execution.
• Establish consistent commissioning procedures, test forms, and quality expectations.
• Support recruiting, training, performance reviews, and resource planning.

Quality and Documentation

• Review and approve test reports, commissioning records, redlined drawings, deficiency logs, and turnover packages within assigned authority.
• Maintain traceable records of testing, corrective actions, retesting, and equipment acceptance.
• Coordinate field changes with engineering and ensure final documentation reflects installed conditions.
• Capture lessons learned and improve commissioning processes across projects.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Electrical Engineering Technology, or a related field; equivalent technical education and substantial relevant experience will also be considered.
• At least 8 years of experience in substation testing, protection and control, or commissioning, including 3 years leading field teams or commissioning projects.
• Demonstrated experience commissioning HV/MV substations through energization and turnover.
• Strong understanding of protective relaying, substation control circuits, electrical equipment testing, and commissioning practices.
• Ability to interpret one-line diagrams, AC/DC schematics, wiring diagrams, relay logic, and equipment drawings.
• Hands-on experience with protective relay test equipment and electrical diagnostic instruments.
• Experience with SEL relays and associated configuration and analysis tools.
• Working knowledge of applicable NETA, IEEE, NFPA 70E, OSHA, utility, and project requirements.
• Strong leadership, troubleshooting, scheduling, and client communication skills.
• Willingness to travel extensively and support outages, weekend work, and extended commissioning schedules as required.
• Valid driver’s license.

Preferred Qualifications

• Professional Engineer license.
• NETA Level III or IV certification, or comparable demonstrated testing expertise.
• Experience with OMICRON, Doble, Megger, or similar test systems.
• Experience with GE, Siemens, ABB/Hitachi Energy, and other protective relay platforms.
• Experience with SEL RTAC, SCADA gateways, DNP3, Modbus, and IEC 61850 systems.
• Experience commissioning AIS/GIS substations, collector substations, BESS interconnections, and utility-scale renewable energy facilities.
• Experience with transformer diagnostics, relay event analysis, and complex protection scheme troubleshooting.
• Experience developing a commissioning team or expanding a testing and commissioning business.

Compensation and Benefits

Competitive compensation based on experience and qualifications, with benefits including health, dental, and vision insurance; a 401(k) plan; paid time off; and professional development support.