Protection & Control (P&C) Design Engineer – Cape Town

Kirby Group Engineering; Cape Town; On-site; ZAR 350,000 - 550,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Structured development

UK/EU exposure

Career progression

Job summary

Kirby Group Engineering in Cape Town is seeking a motivated Junior or Intermediate P&C Design Engineer to support HV substation projects. You will work under senior guidance, gaining exposure to UK design standards, protection systems, and substation automation technologies.

This role offers the chance to contribute to complex transmission and renewable energy infrastructure across the UK, Ireland, Europe, and South Africa within a high-performance engineering culture.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering or equivalent.
• 1–4 years’ experience in HV substation / P&C design.
• Exposure to protection and control systems.
• Familiarity with AutoCAD or EPLAN and design principles.

Responsibilities

• Assist in preparing HV substation secondary designs and schematics.
• Develop protection philosophies and SCADA integration concepts.
• Support development of control and protection schemes.
• Contribute to testing, commissioning, and troubleshooting activities.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams and senior engineers.
• Ensure designs meet IEC, IEEE, ANSI and utility standards.
• Participate in continuous learning and technical development.

Skills

Protection and control systems

Substation design principles

Strong willingness to learn

Clear communication

Teamwork

Education

Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering or equivalent

Tools

AutoCAD

EPLAN

Job description

• Permanent position available with a considerable portfolio of works for the next 5+ years
• To build your career by assisting in the delivery of ‘leading edge’ engineering projects.
• To work with a vibrant, agile and multi-functional team in delivering projects on time, safely, to budget and to the required quality standards.
• To benefit from Kirby’s Career Development Programmes that will enhance your leadership capability.
• To work with the best.
• Excellent package on offer with room for negotiations

About Kirby Group Engineering

Kirby Group Engineering is an international multi-disciplinary engineering services contractor and leading provider of high-value engineering services to a number of ‘blue chip’ companies. Operating across Ireland, the UK, Europe and South Africa, Kirby has become the engineering service provider of choice in growth segments such as pharmaceuticals, data centres and power transmission and distribution. Our culture is innovative, collaborative and performance focused. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to grow and develop in a company committed to developing talent and rewarding performance.

About the Role

We are looking for a motivated Junior or Intermediate P&C Design Engineer to support the delivery of HV substation projects. You will work under senior guidance while gaining exposure to UK design standards, protection systems, and substation automation technologies. This is an exciting opportunity to work on complex high voltage transmission utility and renewable energy infrastructure projects in the UK, Ireland and the rest of Europe while contributing to a collaborative, high-performance engineering culture.

Key Responsibilities

• Assist in preparing HV substation secondary designs, including:
• Schematic diagrams
• Protection philosophies
• Substation SCADA integration
• Support development of control and protection schemes.
• Contribute to SCADA integration and system design.
• Prepare technical documentation, substation equipment sizing and selection, and design deliverables.
• Ensure designs meet IEC, IEEE, ANSI and Utility specific standards.
• Support design reviews and respond to technical queries.
• Assist with testing, commissioning, and troubleshooting.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams and senior engineers.
• Participate in continuous learning and technical development.

Minimum Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering or equivalent.
• 1–4 years’ experience in HV substation / P&C design.
• Exposure to:
• Protection and control systems
• Substation design principles
• Familiarity with design tools such as AutoCAD, EPLAN (or similar).
• Basic understanding of SCADA and protection schemes.
• ECSA registration (Candidate Engineer) advantageous.

Key Competencies

• Strong willingness to learn and grow.
• Good technical and analytical skills.
• Clear communication and teamwork ability.
• Attention to detail and commitment to quality.

What We Offer

• Structured development under senior engineers.
• Exposure to UK and rest of Europe engineering standards and projects.
• Career progression pathway from Junior → Senior Engineer.
• Supportive and collaborative team environment.

For more information on this role, or other Construction / Engineering opportunities across Ireland, the UK, Europe, or South Africa please review our careers page (Vacancies – Kirby Group Careers) or contact the Talent Acquisition Team at Kirby Group in confidence on [phone].

Kirby Group Engineering is an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to fostering an inclusive workplace and welcome applications from all suitably qualified candidates, regardless of race, gender, disability, religion, sexual orientation, or age.