Power Systems Engineer

American Terawatt•San Francisco, CA

12h

About The Position

American Terawatt is building an industrial electric grid for the United States, designing and deploying advanced power transmission systems for large industrial loads. Its network is based on HVDC transmission and standardized, modular terminals that integrate energy storage and can expand into nodes on a future HVDC network. The Power Systems Engineer will help design, model, test, and deploy HVDC terminals and transmission systems. Working with a Principal Engineer, the broader R&D Engineering team, and test engineers and technicians, the engineer will own power-system modeling, subsystem validation, and commissioning support. This is a hands-on individual-contributor role with the opportunity to grow into broader system-level technical ownership as the company scales. The role reports directly to a Principal Engineer. The engineer will contribute to HVDC system specification and design, evaluate terminal performance using EMT and transmission-system models, and turn study results into requirements, equipment specifications, and design recommendations. They will also develop and execute subsystem validation tests, compare physical results with simulations, resolve discrepancies, update models and designs, and support field commissioning. Early milestones include learning the terminal architecture and subsystem requirements, setting up modeling and testing tools, reproducing baseline results, and taking ownership of an initial analysis or design task. By six months, the engineer is expected to independently own models and studies for assigned subsystems, deliver design updates responsive to requirements and vendor constraints, and complete a validation cycle from simulation through physical testing while contributing to a major testing or commissioning milestone.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or a related field.
At least 3 years of commercial experience in power systems or electrical engineering.
Hands-on experience with transmission planning tools such as PSSE, PSLF, or DIgSILENT PowerFactory, in addition to EMT tools such as PSCAD or EMTP, and/or industrial or distribution tools such as ETAP or SKM PowerTools.
Experience through the full engineering lifecycle, from concept through design, development, testing, deployment, and commissioning of a functioning commercial system.

Nice To Haves

Master's or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Controls, or Power Systems.
Experience designing across power delivery and generation infrastructure, including medium-voltage and high-voltage applications.
Experience with grid interconnection processes, utility coordination, and applicable codes and standards, including NEC, NERC, IEEE, IEC, CIGRE, ANSI, and NESC.
Experience performing advanced power-system studies, including harmonic analysis (such as IEEE 519 compliance), control interaction studies (such as sub-synchronous control interaction), and protection studies (such as short-circuit analysis and relay coordination) for complex electrical systems.
Experience designing and operating islanded power systems that support critical loads.
Proficiency with Python or MATLAB for simulation automation and results post-processing.
Familiarity with DC transmission architectures.
Background in data center or other high-density compute power infrastructure, or exposure to AI infrastructure or hyperscale facility development.

Responsibilities

Contribute to the specification and design of HVDC systems.
Develop and validate terminal subsystems in simulation and physical hardware, building end-to-end knowledge of the terminal design.
Use EMT and transmission-system models to assess how customer requirements, grid conditions, and available vendor equipment affect terminal performance.
Translate modeling results into updated requirements, equipment specifications, and design recommendations that meet project schedules.
Develop and execute subsystem validation tests with test engineers and technicians, including overstress and fault-injection testing against defined design limits.
Compare physical test results with simulations, resolve discrepancies, and update models and designs.
Support field commissioning to verify system performance.
Own models and studies for assigned terminal subsystems and use results to guide design decisions.
Contribute to testing and commissioning milestones.

Benefits

Competitive compensation package including salary and equity, commensurate with experience.
Medical, dental, and vision coverage, including 75% coverage for dependents and spouses.
Up to $300 per month reimbursement for gym and wellness expenses, or Bay Club membership for San Francisco-based employees.
Lunch provided daily when working from an office.
Unlimited PTO with manager approval.
Company-wide office closures for the week of July 4 and one week in December.
Laptop of choice provided.
San Francisco office on the Embarcadero, near public transit.
Pre-tax transit benefit.
Employee-contribution 401(k) program.