Principal Engineer, BESS

About Sparkfund

Sparkfund is the deployment services company utilities rely on to take DERs from grid edge to grid core.

With over a decade of experience as a utility services company, Sparkfund has pioneered a smarter approach to deploying distributed assets as part of a fast-growing grid. Through its Distributed Capacity Procurement (DCP) model, Sparkfund enables utilities to plan, deploy, and dispatch DERs at the scale and pace necessary to meet load growth demand and unlock the full value of the grid. We support program design, assessment of DER grid value, host engagement, and value chain management to ensure on-time, on-budget deployment of distributed resources with maximum grid value and lowest cost.

With more than 3,500 projects deployed across 43 states and more than 300MW of energized assets constructed, Sparkfund is transforming buildings into a valuable extension of the grid for the benefit of our society.

Position Summary

As the Principal Engineer for BESS, you will be our chief technical authority on the technology, procurement, and strategic application of utility-scale energy storage. You will serve as the technical north star for our core business, operating at the intersection of strategy, engineering, and commercial execution. Your expertise will shape our technical roadmap and strategic sourcing, providing the foundational engineering for our large-scale DER programs and ensuring we build confidence with our utility partners and regulators.

Location 

While Sparkfund is a remote-first company, with a digital workplace built around emerging hub-offices, this role is required to be in/around our Denver, Minneapolis, and Washington, DC hubs area. Candidates must be within commuting distance, or open to relocating, to be considered for this role. Company subsidized relocation is available for this role and will be covered by the recruiter. 

Key Responsibilities 

Strategy & Technical Leadership

• Serve as the organization's foremost technical expert on all aspects of grid-scale BESS, including various cell chemistries, power conversion systems (PCS), control platforms, and safety protocols.
• Advise senior leadership on the safe and effective design, construction, operation, and development of the company's energy storage portfolio.
• Lead the development of the long-term energy storage technology roadmap, evaluating emerging technologies and their potential for grid support applications.
• Translate technical roadmaps into actionable sourcing strategies by identifying and developing relationships with key BESS suppliers, integrators, and EPC contractors.
• Provide expert technical guidance and justification for BESS projects within Integrated Resource Plans (IRPs), regulatory filings, and rate case proceedings.

Strategic Sourcing & Contract Management

• Lead the end-to-end competitive sourcing process for BESS equipment, software, and services, including capital construction, microgrids, and Operations & Maintenance (O&M) agreements.
• Manage the development and issuance of RFQ/RFI/RFP bid packages, lead cross-functional bid evaluation teams, and drive the final supplier selection process.
• Serve as the first-chair technical negotiator for high-value contracts, including BESS supply agreements, full turnkey EPC contracts, and Master Services Agreements (MSAs), driving for optimal terms related to cost, schedule, safety, and performance.
• Oversee contract administration post-execution, including supplier performance tracking, compliance with terms, change order management, and dispute resolution.

Engineering & Design Governance

• Establish and govern the company’s technical standards and specifications, which serve as the foundation for RFP requirements and contractual technical exhibits.
• Lead the technical review of all utility-owned and third-party interconnection applications for BESS projects, ensuring compliance with grid codes, safety standards, and operational requirements.
• Act as the primary resource for BESS safety, ensuring all designs and operational procedures comply with relevant codes and that these requirements are embedded in all supplier contracts.

Preferred Skills & Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Energy Management, Environmental Science, or a related technical field.
• 5+ years of project development engineering experience in the clean energy, resilience, and/or energy efficiency space.
• Licensed Professional Engineer (P.E.).
• Demonstrated technical proficiency with ba