Senior Drilling Engineer

Fervo Energy Company•Houston, TX

About The Position

Fervo is working to build the most cost-effective, repeatable geothermal power plants in the world. Delivering on this mission requires first-of-a-kind well architectures, disciplined drilling execution, and continuous learning across each phase of well construction. Joining Fervo’s Operations organization means operating where subsurface innovation meets real-world execution, with safety, reliability, and capital efficiency as non-negotiables. The Senior Drilling Engineer will lead the planning, design, and execution support of complex geothermal drilling programs in a highly dynamic environment. This role is suited for an engineer with deep horizontal drilling expertise, strong field execution instincts, and a track record of improving drilling performance in technically challenging settings. Success requires the ability to adapt conventional drilling practices to high-temperature geothermal applications while maintaining rigorous standards of safety, reliability, and capital efficiency. This senior individual contributor role is responsible for delivering safe, high-performance wells on schedule and on budget, while systematically improving well cycle time, cost, and reliability across the portfolio. You will own well engineering deliverables end-to-end and help elevate technical standards across the drilling organization.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Petroleum Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or related engineering discipline
7+ years of drilling engineering experience, including at least 5 years with an operator in US onshore horizontal drilling environments.
Demonstrated ownership of full well lifecycle engineering; from planning and AFE development through execution support and post-well analysis.
Strong competency in core well engineering fundamentals, including casing design, torque & drag modeling, hydraulics, drill string/BHA design, directional drilling, cementing, and contingency planning.
Proven experience improving drilling performance metrics (e.g., cycle time, NPT reduction, cost per foot) through structured analysis and execution discipline.
Experience building time and cost estimates and managing plan vs. actual tracking during operations.
Proficiency in industry-standard well engineering software and modeling tools.
Strong problem-solving capability with the ability to make sound technical decisions in dynamic field environments.
Demonstrated commitment to Health, Safety, and Environmental excellence.

Nice To Haves

Experience in geothermal or other high-temperature, technically complex well environments.
Experience with casing and tubing stress analysis under thermal and mechanical loading conditions.
Familiarity with WellCat or comparable casing design software.
Hands-on field experience across drilling, completions, or workover operations.
Experience working on first-of-a-kind, unconventional, or technically novel well designs.
Prior experience mentoring or informally leading early-career engineers.

Responsibilities

Well Planning & Engineering Ownership Lead full lifecycle well engineering for complex geothermal wells, including trajectory design, casing programs, cementing strategies, drill string/BHA configurations, hydraulics modeling, and contingency planning.
Develop execution-ready drilling programs and procedures that translate engineering design into clear, field-ready operational guidance.
Build detailed time and cost models, support AFE development, and ensure engineering assumptions are technically sound and economically optimized.
Identify and proactively mitigate subsurface and operational risks through formal risk assessments, stress modeling, and scenario planning.
Operations Execution & Performance Optimization Serve as the accountable engineering lead during drilling operations, providing real-time technical guidance and ensuring alignment between design intent and field execution.
Diagnose and resolve drilling dysfunctions (e.g., vibration, wellbore instability, losses, stuck pipe) using structured root cause analysis and data-driven decision making.
Lead technical response during NPT events, coordinate recovery plans with field teams and contractors, and minimize operational and cost impacts.
Uphold rigorous HSE standards in all design and operational decisions, reinforcing a culture of safety and execution discipline.
Cost, Schedule & Performance Optimization Own plan vs. actual tracking for well cost and schedule performance, identifying variance drivers and implementing corrective actions.
Develop and monitor performance KPIs (ROP, NPT, flat time, connection efficiency, cost per foot) to systematically improve well cycle time and capital efficiency.
Lead structured post-well reviews and ensure lessons learned are embedded into subsequent well designs and operational practices.
Evaluate contractor and service provider performance using quantitative metrics and support data-driven improvements in execution.
Cross-Functional Integration & Technical Leadership Collaborate with completions, reservoir, and production engineering teams to ensure integrated well architecture aligned with long-term injection and production requirements.
Support vendor selection, technology pilots, and adoption of new tools suited for high-temperature and first-of-a-kind geothermal applications.
Contribute to development of scalable drilling engineering standards, workflows, and documentation as Fervo transitions to multi-well development programs.
Mentor early-career engineers and elevate technical rigor across the drilling organization through example and knowledge sharing.