Project Development Associate

CycloKinetics•Salt Lake City, UT

2d•Onsite

About The Position

CycloKinetics is advancing high-performance propellants for aerospace and defense by converting biomass into fuels and propellants. Based in Salt Lake City, Utah, the company develops scalable domestic energy solutions for aviation, aerospace, and defense applications. The Project Development Associate supports capital projects from concept through final investment decision (FID), coordinating technical, commercial, and regulatory workstreams across multiple projects. The position supports the overall project pipeline and reports directly to the SVP of Capital Projects. Work includes project planning and stage-gate materials, site analysis, financial modeling, cost estimating, permitting, commercial arrangements, government funding applications, risk tracking, and coordination with internal teams and external advisors. The position is based on-site in Salt Lake City, Utah. Travel to project sites or to support government reporting requirements may be required up to 25%. Physical demands may include lifting or moving items up to 50 pounds, bending, standing, reaching, climbing, walking, and prolonged sitting. Safe work habits are required, and company-provided personal protective equipment must be used. Employment is contingent upon successful completion of background verification and drug screens. The role is classified as exempt.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in engineering, construction management, or a related field, or equivalent experience.
4–7 years of scheduling experience on capital projects in industrial, energy, chemical, or infrastructure settings.
Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Project or Primavera P6, including baselines, calendars, relationships, and resource loading.
Working knowledge of enterprise scheduling concepts, including multi-project environments, EPS/OBS structures, portfolio roll-ups, and cross-project resource management.
Working knowledge of CPM scheduling, earned value management, and progress measurement.
Experience reviewing contractor schedules on EPC or EPCM execution.
Strong Excel skills and ability to communicate schedule drivers clearly to non-specialists.
Willingness to travel to project sites or to support government reporting requirements up to 25%.

Nice To Haves

Experience with enterprise scheduling platforms such as P6 EPPM, Primavera Cloud, or similar, and portfolio reporting.
Experience on government projects, such as DOE, DoD, or other federally or state-funded programs, including familiarity with IMS deliverables, EVMS (ANSI/EIA-748), and schedule quality assessments such as the DCMA 14-point check.
PSP (AACE) or PMI-SP certification, or certification in progress.
Experience with schedule risk tools such as Oracle Primavera Risk Analysis, Acumen, or similar.
Experience with projects in synthetic and renewable fuels, power generation, oil and gas, process facilities, or defense-adjacent infrastructure.
Exposure to stage-gate/FEL frameworks and projects with grant, loan, or government-funded milestone reporting.
Familiarity with Power BI or similar reporting tools.

Responsibilities

Support project development workplans through FEL 1–3 and prepare gate packages and decision materials for investment committee and leadership review.
Conduct site screening and selection analyses covering feedstock and offtake logistics, utilities, permitting, community considerations, and infrastructure access.
Build and maintain project financial models, including capital costs, operating costs, sensitivities, and returns, in coordination with finance.
Support capital cost estimating and benchmarking, and manage engineering consultant and FEED contractor deliverables.
Track and support permitting, environmental review, and regulatory workstreams.
Assist in structuring commercial arrangements, including feedstock supply, offtake, EPC/EPCM contracting strategy, joint ventures, and partner agreements.
Prepare applications and supporting documentation for government funding and financing programs, including DOE programs, OTAs, DFC, and export credit or multilateral structures.
Conduct market, policy, and incentive analyses, including tax credits and regulatory mechanisms relevant to project economics.
Maintain the project risk register, assumptions log, and development tracker.
Coordinate with legal, finance, engineering, and external advisors.
Support data-room preparation for lenders and investors.