The Substation Commissioning Manager serves as the Owner's representative for utility-scale renewable energy projects, overseeing all commissioning activities from mechanical completion through energization, startup, performance testing, and final operational turnover. This role provides technical leadership and commissioning oversight for substations, solar, battery energy storage systems (BESS), and associated electrical infrastructure.
The Commissioning Manager is responsible for coordinating EPC contractors, OEMs, utility representatives, transmission operators, and third-party vendors to ensure projects are commissioned safely, efficiently, and in compliance with engineering designs, contractual requirements, and industry standards. The role includes leading commissioning execution, system walkdowns, testing activities, deficiency resolution, SCADA integration, protection and controls validation, and operational readiness while supporting multiple projects in a fast-paced construction environment.
This position requires extensive field experience in renewable energy commissioning, strong technical expertise in electrical systems, and the ability to resolve complex technical issues during startup and grid interconnection.
Required Qualifications
- Minimum 5 years of onsite commissioning, startup, or construction support experience for renewable energy or utility-scale power generation projects.
- Minimum 3 years of commissioning experience working for an EPC contractor supporting renewable energy projects.
- Demonstrated experience commissioning substations, utility-scale solar, battery energy storage systems (BESS), or other power generation facilities.
- Strong knowledge of electrical construction and commissioning practices, including NEC and NFPA standards.
- Experience with:
- SCADA integration and troubleshooting
- Electrical, Instrumentation & Controls (E&I)
- Protection and Control systems
- Grid interconnection and energization activities
- Electrical testing and startup procedures
- Ability to review engineering drawings, commissioning procedures, and technical documentation.
- Strong project coordination, planning, scheduling, and progress reporting skills.
- Proficiency with Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF editing software, and document management systems.
- Excellent communication and problem-solving skills with the ability to collaborate across engineering, construction, operations, utilities, and third-party vendors.
- Ability to manage multiple projects and prioritize competing deadlines.
- Willingness to travel extensively and support off-hours, weekend, and outage-related commissioning activities.
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