Distribution System Planner

AECOM•Chicago, IL

About The Position

AECOM is seeking an experienced Distribution System Planner to support a diverse range of clients, including electric utilities, developers, government agencies, and other infrastructure stakeholders in planning safe, reliable, resilient, and future-ready energy and distribution systems. This is a hands-on technical position focused on electric distribution system planning, grid modernization, and infrastructure analysis. Responsibilities include load forecasting, capacity and infrastructure planning, system performance and reliability assessments, distributed energy resource (DER) integration, transportation and building electrification studies, microgrid and resilience planning, non-wires alternatives evaluations, and development of capital investment strategies. The role may also support broader energy transition initiatives, including decarbonization planning, renewable energy integration, and long-range infrastructure planning. The successful candidate will be capable of independently performing technical analyses and planning studies, developing actionable infrastructure and investment recommendations, and collaborating directly with client planning, engineering, operations, sustainability, and asset management teams. The ideal candidate will combine strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to communicate complex technical findings to both technical and non-technical stakeholders, helping organizations make informed decisions about future energy and infrastructure investments.

Requirements

BA/BS in Electrical Engineering or Power Systems Engineering or demonstrated equivalency of experience and/or education
6 years of related experience in electric utility distribution planning, distribution system analysis, or closely related power-system planning experience.
Demonstrated hands-on experience performing distribution system planning studies
Experience with CYME, Synergi Electric, WindMil, ETAP, or comparable distribution analysis software
Demonstrated knowledge of distribution load flow, voltage, thermal capacity, contingency, and reliability analysis
Experience evaluating feeder and/or substation capacity requirements and developing system improvement alternatives

Nice To Haves

Masters Degree in Electrical Engineering or Power Systems Engineering
Professional Engineer (PE) license or progress toward licensure
Prior electric utility distribution-planning experience
Advanced experience with CYME and/or Synergi Electric
Experience with distribution load forecasting tools and methodologies
Experience with DER, EV, energy storage, hosting-capacity, and electrification studies
Experience with integrated distribution planning and non-wires alternatives
Familiarity with GIS, SCADA, AMI, ADMS, DERMS, or other utility systems and data sources used to support distribution planning
Python, SQL, Power BI, or other data-analysis/automation experience
Experience developing distribution capital plans or supporting utility regulatory filings
Strong analytical, technical-writing, and client-communication skills

Responsibilities

Perform near-term and long-range distribution system and energy infrastructure planning studies
Develop, maintain, and validate distribution network and energy system planning models
Evaluate electrical distribution assets, including feeders, transformers, substations, and customer-owned infrastructure, for capacity, performance, and future growth requirements
Perform distribution load flow, voltage, thermal loading, contingency, and related system analyses
Identify existing and future infrastructure constraints, operational challenges, and capacity limitations
Develop and evaluate technically viable infrastructure alternatives to support reliability, growth, electrification, and decarbonization objectives
Evaluate feeder reinforcement, reconductoring, new feeders, substation expansion, voltage improvements, switching/configuration changes, and other distribution system solutions
Support development of multi-year capital improvement, infrastructure investment, and asset management plan
Develop and evaluate load and energy forecasts at the distribution level
Assess impacts of customer growth, transportation electrification, building electrification, data centers and other large loads, distributed generation, and energy storage
Translate load forecasts into feeder and substation capacity requirements
Perform scenario and sensitivity analyses to address uncertainty in future load growth
Evaluate the impacts and opportunities associated with DERs, distributed generation, renewable energy, and energy storage technologies
Perform or support hosting capacity, interconnection, and grid integration studies
Evaluate battery storage, EV charging, microgrids, and other distributed technologies
Support Integrated Distribution Planning and evaluation of traditional infrastructure and non-wires alternatives
Evaluate reliability, resilience, and operational performance of electric distribution and energy delivery systems
Identify opportunities to improve system sectionalization, redundancy, transfer capability, and operational flexibility
Support distribution resilience, wildfire mitigation, undergrounding, and system-hardening planning where applicable
Coordinate planning recommendations with distribution operations, protection, engineering, asset management, and field organizations
Develop project need statements and technical justifications for distribution capital projects
Develop conceptual alternatives, planning-level cost estimates, and investment recommendations
Support capital prioritization and risk-based investment planning
Prepare technical reports, presentations, planning studies, and recommendations
Participate in technical discussions and workshops with utility clients
Support technical proposals and scopes of work
Coordinate with other AECOM engineering, advisory, program management, environmental, and digital disciplines as required