Senior Facilities Electrical Engineer

About the Company

We are a renewable energy and ocean technology company committed to rapidly developing and deploying technologies that will ensure a sustainable future for Earth by unlocking the vast energy potential of its oceans. Our focus is on capturing civilizational levels of ultra-low-cost renewable energy for applications including computing and affordable renewable fuels delivered to shore.

The company is a public benefit corporation headquartered in Portland, Oregon, and backed by leading venture capitalists, philanthropic investors, university endowments, and private investment offices. We operate as an idea meritocracy in which the best ideas change the company’s direction on a regular basis.

Our staff have worked at organizations such as SpaceX, Blue Origin, Boeing, Tesla, Apple, Virgin Orbit, Astra, Google, Amazon, Microsoft, New Relic, Bridgewater, Raytheon, Disney Imagineering, and the US Army and Air Force, as well as research universities, startups, and small companies across a range of industries.

About the Job

Our core technology is the node, a device that produces energy in the ocean’s harshest conditions for years at a time without human maintenance or intervention.

Panthalassa is expanding across multiple sites to support manufacturing, testing, R&D, and land-based compute. As new power arrives at each site, it has to be distributed safely and reliably, in a way that can keep growing without rework.

As our Senior Facilities Electrical Engineer, you will own the electrical distribution systems inside our facilities, from the main service switchgear to the loads it serves. You will be Panthalassa’s technical authority for how our buildings are powered: setting standards, reviewing designs, planning cutovers in operating facilities, tracking capacity, and keeping systems safe and reliable long after energization. You’ll work closely with our Senior Power Infrastructure Engineer, who brings new utility service to each site. You take it from there.

This role is about owning facility electrical systems over their lifetime, not installing individual tools or production equipment.

Candidates should have strong interpersonal skills and be able to thrive in a creative, scrappy, and collaborative environment in which the best ideas change the company’s direction on a regular basis.

Responsibilities

• Own the electrical distribution systems at each site, including customer-owned medium-voltage equipment once energized, and serve as the owner’s technical authority for how they are designed, modified, and operated.
• Track usable capacity across switchgear, transformers, feeders, and panels, and provide measured demand and capacity data to inform site-level power forecasts and upgrade plans.
• Translate manufacturing, test, R&D, and compute needs into distribution plans and phased facility upgrades that scale without rework.
• Set owner-side design standards for distribution equipment, standby and backup power, labeling, documentation, and maintainability.
• Lead technical review of designs, power system studies (short-circuit, coordination, arc-flash), equipment selections, submittals, and field changes with engineers of record and contractors.
• Coordinate electrical design with cooling, controls, space planning, and operations, particularly for high-density compute and power-intensive test loads.
• Plan and lead shutdowns, cutovers, and energizations in occupied facilities with minimal disruption to operations.
• Diagnose power quality issues, failures, and reliability risks; set maintenance priorities by system criticality and plan for spares and replacements.
• Own the electrical safety program, including energy control/LOTO, arc-flash labeling, and NFPA 70E practices, in partnership with EH&S and Site Operations.
• Maintain accurate single-line diagrams, panel schedules, equipment records, and capacity information across all sites.
• Evaluate the condition and capacity of electrical distribution during due diligence on prospective facilities.

Required Qualifications

• A degree in electrical engineering or a related field, or equivalent experience owning electrical systems in complex facilities.
• At least five years of responsibility for electrical distribution systems in industrial, manufacturing, laboratory, data center, or similarly technical facilities.
• Owner-side, facility engineering, or engineer-of-record experience with a facility’s distribution system as a whole, not only individual equipment installations.
• Experience with low- and medium-voltage distribution, including transformers, switchgear, panelboards, and protective devices.
• Experience leading shutdowns, cutovers, or upgrades in operating facilities.
• Ability to develop and review single-line diagrams, panel schedules, electrical drawings, and power system studies.
• Working knowledge of NEC, NFPA 70E, and OSHA electrical safety requirements.
• Experience directing external designers and contractors through design, installation, and commissioning.

Desired Qualifications

• Experience with standby generation, UPS, or energy storage systems.
• Experience with data center, high-density compute, or power-intensive test facilities.
• Experience building or running arc-flash and electrical maintenance programs (NFPA 70E/70B).
• Experience owning electrical systems across multiple sites.
• Professional Engineer or Engineer-in-Training certification.

The above qualifications are desired, not required. We encourage you to apply if you are a strong candidate with only some of the desired skills and experience listed.

Additional Requirements

• Travel to vendors and test sites as needed
• Intermittently able to work longer hours and weekends to support critical needs. While we expect a lot of each other, we also offer a high degree of autonomy and work-life balance, including flexible PTO and flexible working hours.

Compensation and Benefits

If hired for this full-time role, you will receive:

• Cash compensation of $160,000 - $210,000.
• Equity in the company. We’re all owners and if we’re successful, this equity should be far and away the most valuable component of your compensation.
• A benefits package that helps you take care of yourself and your family, including:
  • Flexible paid time off
  • Health insurance (the company pays 100% of gold-level PPO plan for full-time employees, their partners, and dependents)
  • Dental insurance (the company pays 100% for full-time employees, their partners, and dependents)
  • Vision insurance (the company pays 100% for full-time employees, their partners, and dependents)
  • Disability insurance (the company pays 100% for a policy to provide long-term financial support if you become disabled)
  • Ability to contribute to tax-advantaged accounts, including 401(k), health FSA, and dependent care FSA
• Relocation assistance to facilitate your move to Portland (if needed).

Location

This is an on-site position. Our offices, lab, and shop are located in Portland, Oregon.