Hydropower Engineer

Energy Mid-level (L4 equivalent) 2-5 years

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The job description

Tech stack. HEC-RAS, HEC-HMS, AutoCAD Civil 3D, turbine selection tools, FERC licensing references, Python, SCADA historians

About the role

You will join a hydropower company that develops, relicenses, and operates hydroelectric plants from small run-of-river sites to large storage reservoirs. The team owns hydrology, civil works, electromechanical design, and regulatory compliance across the asset lifecycle. This role matters because hydro plants run for a century, your designs and analyses lock in performance for generations, and relicensing outcomes decide whether existing assets keep generating. You will cover the full hydropower asset lifecycle from feasibility and FERC licensing through operations optimization and dam safety compliance. The role includes turbine selection and cavitation analysis, hydraulic transient studies, and environmental flow requirements that constrain operations. You will support relicensing efforts, where decades of operating data must be synthesized into license applications that satisfy regulators and stakeholders. Dam safety never leaves the picture: your inspection findings and instrumentation reviews protect both the public and the asset.

What you will achieve

Deliver hydrologic and hydraulic analyses supporting 200+ MW of development and relicensing, with flow-duration and energy estimates validated against gage records
Optimize turbine selection and plant sizing that lift annual energy production 3 to 5 percent over baseline configurations, coordinated with environmental consultants to align engineering with permit conditions
Own FERC licensing study plans and engineering exhibits, keeping relicensing schedules on track through agency consultation
Cut forced outage rates by 25 percent through condition assessment programs for turbines, governors, and dam safety instrumentation, with instrumentation trends reviewed on a defined surveillance schedule
Drive modernization scopes (runner replacements, control upgrades, fish passage) with benefit-cost analyses that clear investment thresholds

What you will bring

Must-haves

2 to 5 years of experience in hydropower, water resources, or heavy civil engineering roles
Strong understanding of open-channel hydraulics, hydrology, and reservoir operations
Proficiency with HEC-RAS and HEC-HMS for hydraulic modeling and flood hydrology
Working knowledge of hydro turbine types (Francis, Kaplan, Pelton) and their selection criteria
Familiarity with FERC licensing processes, dam safety requirements, and environmental consultation
Ability to perform energy production modeling from flow records and plant characteristics
Technical writing for license applications, study reports, and dam safety documentation

Nice-to-haves

Experience with pumped storage hydropower development or operations
Knowledge of fish passage design and environmental flow requirements
Familiarity with governor and excitation system modernization
Understanding of ancillary service markets for hydro flexibility
Knowledge of FERC licensing processes and dam safety regulations