Principal Electrical Engineer

Summary

Professional Summary

The Client is seeking a Principal Electrical Engineer to lead electrical engineering delivery across a portfolio of oil, gas, and chemical projects from either its Billings, Montana or Bismarck, North Dakota office locations. In this role, the professional will deliver advanced electrical engineering services, offering technical leadership, project oversight, and personnel supervision within the discipline. Responsibilities include managing and mentoring an engineering and design team, guiding technical direction, reviewing complex deliverables, and driving overall performance to ensure strict compliance with project objectives, safety-in-design protocols, and client specifications.

Core Responsibilities

• Manage and mentor a team of electrical engineers and designers, overseeing deliverables across oil, gas, and chemical scopes.
• Plan, organize, and direct engineering workflows from conception through completion, ensuring safety-in-design, schedule adherence, and quality benchmarks.
• Collaborate closely with project management, client representatives, and multidisciplinary teams to satisfy strategic project goals.
• Direct one or more projects while providing high-level guidance to other lead engineers within the broader program.
• Cultivate and maintain positive professional relationships with project management and clients to verify satisfaction with project progress and technical standards.
• Communicate effectively via written, electronic, and verbal channels with internal teams, external stakeholders, and management.
• Establish an engaging and collaborative work environment that fosters technical development and cross-functional alignment.
• Ensure all delivered electrical engineering services comply with client standards, customer requirements, and applicable statutory and regulatory specifications within established budgets and schedules.
• Initiate, manage, and supervise project-specific electrical engineering requirements.
• Participate in project meetings, draft progress reports, and enforce formal checking and quality verification procedures.
• Monitor project scope clarity and manage technical modifications in strict compliance with formal project change management procedures.
• Advise and assist project teams during procurement, construction, and commissioning phases, including preparing purchase requisitions, conducting technical bid evaluations, and drafting purchase orders.
• Act as the designated Electrical Engineering Lead on assigned projects when required.
• Assign tasks, monitor progress, support workshare initiatives, and oversee adherence to design specifications for assigned team members.
• Proactively resolve discrepancies between internal standards and customer requirements.
• Maintain current knowledge of technical developments, statutory revisions, and innovations in electrical engineering.
• Support, advise, and guide junior personnel within the discipline.
• Liaise with interfacing engineering disciplines, project leadership, and external customer stakeholders.
• Identify complex technical issues, execute robust engineering solutions, and solicit senior-level guidance when necessary.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor of Science (BS) or Master of Science (MS) degree in Electrical Engineering from a recognized, relevant institution.
• 8 to 15+ years of electrical engineering experience within the oil and gas industry and/or refinery environments.
• Practical experience working within multi-disciplinary projects and integrated teams.
• Comprehensive technical background in power systems engineering, including electrical system design, system protection, and installations in hazardous refinery environments.
• Experience with low-voltage (LV) and medium-voltage (MV) electrical distribution systems, equipment selection, protective relay selection, power management system configuration, and interface management.
• Proven capability to perform and review power system studies and protective device settings.
• Demonstrated proficiency utilizing electrical engineering software platforms, specifically ETAP, PSCAD, and SPL.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills in English, alongside demonstrated leadership and problem-solving abilities.
• Working knowledge of the fundamental principles of electrical engineering as well as the core interfaces of adjacent engineering disciplines.
• Comprehensive understanding of applicable local, national, and international standards, alongside statutory and regulatory codes.
• Proficiency in the Microsoft Office Suite.
• Candidacy consideration is open to TN visa-eligible Canadian applicants.

Preferred Qualifications

• 12+ years of dedicated experience in the oil and gas industry.
• Active Professional Engineer (PE) license in the United States.
• Relevant postgraduate credentials in engineering, management, project management, or formal supervisory qualifications (or equivalent).
• Advanced expertise in electrical distribution system development, protective relay coordination, equipment specification, and power management configuration.
• Advanced proficiency in utilizing MS Office Suite and electrical analysis tools including ETAP and SPL.

Employment Details

• Employment Type: Long-Term Contract (with potential for permanent conversion based on individual performance).
• Work Location: 100% On-Site at one of the following facilities:
• Montana: Billings, MT 59102, USA
• North Dakota: Bismarck, ND 58503, USA
• Work Schedule: 9/80 schedule (every other Friday off).

Job Description

Professional Summary

The Client is seeking a Principal Electrical Engineer to lead electrical engineering delivery across a portfolio of oil, gas, and chemical projects from either its Billings, Montana or Bismarck, North Dakota office locations. In this role, the professional will deliver advanced electrical engineering services, offering technical leadership, project oversight, and personnel supervision within the discipline. Responsibilities include managing and mentoring an engineering and design team, guiding technical direction, reviewing complex deliverables, and driving overall performance to ensure strict compliance with project objectives, safety-in-design protocols, and client specifications.

Core Responsibilities

• Manage and mentor a team of electrical engineers and designers, overseeing deliverables across oil, gas, and chemical scopes.
• Plan, organize, and direct engineering workflows from conception through completion, ensuring safety-in-design, schedule adherence, and quality benchmarks.
• Collaborate closely with project management, client representatives, and multidisciplinary teams to satisfy strategic project goals.
• Direct one or more projects while providing high-level guidance to other lead engineers within the broader program.
• Cultivate and maintain positive professional relationships with project management and clients to verify satisfaction with project progress and technical standards.
• Communicate effectively via written, electronic, and verbal channels with internal teams, external stakeholders, and management.
• Establish an engaging and collaborative work environment that fosters technical development and cross-functional alignment.
• Ensure all delivered electrical engineering services comply with client standards, customer requirements, and applicable statutory and regulatory specifications within established budgets and schedules.
• Initiate, manage, and supervise project-specific electrical engineering requirements.
• Participate in project meetings, draft progress reports, and enforce formal checking and quality verification procedures.
• Monitor project scope clarity and manage technical modifications in strict compliance with formal project change management procedures.
• Advise and assist project teams during procurement, construction, and commissioning phases, including preparing purchase requisitions, conducting technical bid evaluations, and drafting purchase orders.
• Act as the designated Electrical Engineering Lead on assigned projects when required.
• Assign tasks, monitor progress, support workshare initiatives, and oversee adherence to design specifications for assigned team members.
• Proactively resolve discrepancies between internal standards and customer requirements.
• Maintain current knowledge of technical developments, statutory revisions, and innovations in electrical engineering.
• Support, advise, and guide junior personnel within the discipline.
• Liaise with interfacing engineering disciplines, project leadership, and external customer stakeholders.
• Identify complex technical issues, execute robust engineering solutions, and solicit senior-level guidance when necessary.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor of Science (BS) or Master of Science (MS) degree in Electrical Engineering from a recognized, relevant institution.
• 8 to 15+ years of electrical engineering experience within the oil and gas industry and/or refinery environments.
• Practical experience working within multi-disciplinary projects and integrated teams.
• Comprehensive technical background in power systems engineering, including electrical system design, system protection, and installations in hazardous refinery environments.
• Experience with low-voltage (LV) and medium-voltage (MV) electrical distribution systems, equipment selection, protective relay selection, power management system configuration, and interface management.
• Proven capability to perform and review power system studies and protective device settings.
• Demonstrated proficiency utilizing electrical engineering software platforms, specifically ETAP, PSCAD, and SPL.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills in English, alongside demonstrated leadership and problem-solving abilities.
• Working knowledge of the fundamental principles of electrical engineering as well as the core interfaces of adjacent engineering disciplines.
• Comprehensive understanding of applicable local, national, and international standards, alongside statutory and regulatory codes.
• Proficiency in the Microsoft Office Suite.
• Candidacy consideration is open to TN visa-eligible Canadian applicants.

Preferred Qualifications

• 12+ years of dedicated experience in the oil and gas industry.
• Active Professional Engineer (PE) license in the United States.
• Relevant postgraduate credentials in engineering, management, project management, or formal supervisory qualifications (or equivalent).
• Advanced expertise in electrical distribution system development, protective relay coordination, equipment specification, and power management configuration.
• Advanced proficiency in utilizing MS Office Suite and electrical analysis tools including ETAP and SPL.

Employment Details

• Employment Type: Long-Term Contract (with potential for permanent conversion based on individual performance).
• Work Location: 100% On-Site at one of the following facilities:
• Montana: Billings, MT 59102, USA
• North Dakota: Bismarck, ND 58503, USA
• Work Schedule: 9/80 schedule (every other Friday off).