Director, Engineering and Interconnection

Talen Energy•Houston, TX

About The Position

We are seeking a Director, Engineering and Interconnection to lead the owner's-side technical capability supporting Talen Energy's power generation, battery storage, and digital infrastructure development portfolio. The role is accountable for development-stage project engineering, technology and configuration decisions, technical diligence, and grid and transmission interconnection strategy. The Director will translate complex engineering and grid issues into clear decisions that improve safety, reliability, project economics, schedule certainty, and investment readiness. Reporting to the Chief Asset Development Officer, the Director supports opportunities from early site screening through Final Investment Decision and transition to execution. The portfolio includes simple-cycle peakers and combined-cycle facilities using aeroderivative and large-frame F- and H-class gas turbines; standalone and co-located battery energy storage systems; and powered-land and data center projects requiring large-load interconnection and resilient power delivery. The role works across Talen's development functions and with PJM, transmission owners, utilities, OEMs, EPC contractors, the owner's engineer, and technical consultants. Detailed design and specialized studies may be external, but this role retains accountability for technical strategy, standards, decisions, risk, deliverable quality, and consultant performance.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, or another engineering discipline relevant to utility-scale power generation and electric power systems.
10+ years of progressive experience in power generation, transmission, interconnection, project engineering, or energy infrastructure, including substantial responsibility for development-stage work on complex capital projects.
Owner's-side, developer, owner's engineer, EPC, OEM, or utility experience advancing utility-scale projects from screening and concept design through front-end engineering, interconnection studies, FID, or notice to proceed.
Direct experience with simple-cycle and combined-cycle gas-fired generation, including aeroderivative gas turbines and large-frame F- and H-class technologies, together with experience with utility-scale battery energy storage systems.
Strong knowledge of generation and transmission interconnection processes, technical submissions, agreements, network upgrades, cost and schedule drivers, and grid-performance requirements in one or more organized ISO/RTO markets.
Ability to understand, review, and challenge power-flow, short-circuit, dynamic or transient-stability, reactive-power, deliverability, and related power-system studies without relying solely on summary conclusions.
Broad understanding of power-plant and power-delivery engineering, including mechanical systems, high-voltage systems, substations and switchyards, transmission interfaces, civil and structural design, controls, and plant utilities.
Success managing owner's engineers, consultants, OEMs, and EPC contractors; validating cost, schedule, performance, and risk inputs; and communicating complex technical issues to executives and nontechnical stakeholders. Ability to travel regularly as required.

Nice To Haves

Professional Engineer license and/or an advanced degree in engineering, engineering management, or business.
Direct experience with PJM interconnection processes, multiple PJM transmission owners, and projects in one or more PJM states; experience in adjacent competitive power markets is also valued.
Experience with powered-land, hyperscale data center, or other large-load development, including utility-service strategy, large-load interconnection, redundant power delivery, phased energization, and on-site generation or storage.
Experience with greenfield or brownfield development, existing-site reuse, project execution or operations, and common power-system analysis platforms and industry standards.

Responsibilities

Build and lead the Engineering & Interconnection function, including development-stage standards, design criteria, stage-gate deliverables, review protocols, consultant governance, technical reporting, and scalable capability.
Support Site Origination by screening interconnection points, transmission and utility constraints, site layouts, fuel and water interfaces, constructability, and technical fatal flaws. Lead concept design and configuration for simple-cycle, combined-cycle, BESS, and powered-land or data center projects.
Evaluate technology tradeoffs involving output, efficiency, dispatch profile, emissions, water use, footprint, reliability, operating flexibility, lifecycle cost, and schedule. Direct preparation and review of design bases, heat and mass balances, one-lines, layouts, equipment lists, performance assumptions, utility requirements, and preliminary specifications.
Provide engineering inputs needed for permitting, estimating, contracting, and investment decisions, including plant configuration, emissions-control and stack assumptions, water and wastewater concepts, noise sources, site layouts, and construction requirements.
Lead technical evaluation and procurement support for gas turbines, battery systems, transformers, substations, switchyards, controls, and balance-of-plant systems, including technical scopes, proposal reviews, guarantees, lifecycle implications, vendor selection, and long-lead risks.
Select, direct, and hold accountable the owner's engineer, power-system and interconnection consultants, and other engineering specialists. Set acceptance criteria, challenge assumptions, manage quality, budget, and schedule, and resolve multidisciplinary interfaces before they create project risk.
Own engineering and interconnection work plans, budgets, schedules, assumptions, and risks. Develop or validate capital-cost estimates, operating assumptions, equipment lead times, contingencies, engineering maturity, and critical-path inputs for development and investment decisions.
Develop interconnection strategies for generation, storage, and large-load projects, including point-of-interconnection and queue strategy, generation and load-service pathways, co-location or behind-the-meter configurations, phased energization, redundancy, and alignment with target service dates.
Oversee interconnection applications, models, and studies; interpret results and quantify network upgrades, cost and schedule exposure, grid-performance requirements, security, milestone risk, and mitigation alternatives. Support technical provisions in related agreements.
Monitor PJM, transmission-owner, utility, FERC, NERC, and industry requirements; perform technical due diligence for acquisitions, partnerships, site reuse, and equipment opportunities; establish readiness criteria for stage gates and FID; and hand approved projects to Program Delivery and Construction, with targeted support through commissioning and performance testing.
Partner with Project Owners as the accountable technical lead for each opportunity, translating engineering and interconnection analysis into clear recommendations on project configuration, technical feasibility, interconnection pathway, cost and schedule implications, key risks and mitigation alternatives—providing the technical fact base and judgment needed to advance projects toward Final Investment Decisions.