Lead Geotechnical Engineer

Want to be in your element working for fossil freedom using the power of wind and the sun? We’re looking for a Lead Engineer to help us shape the future as part of our Geotechnical team. Join us in exploring and characterizing offshore wind farm sites to drive our renewable energy projects forward.

Be in your element with BA Wind

Our wind, solar and batteries business offers a unique opportunity to be in your element working to help harness the forces which will take us to fossil freedom.

As part of BA Wind you will play a key role in one of the most exciting pipelines in the industry with 24GW of capacity stretching out more than a decade ahead across our key European markets.

You won’t only be involved in developing projects but pioneering cutting-edge innovation, new business models and ways of working with communities and the environment. Working as part of a leading European utility also means you could be helping a growing number of major businesses and brands achieve their own sustainability goals through partnerships.

Do you want to shape the future?

Vattenfall’s Geoscience department continues to grow, and we are now looking for the right person to embrace the position of Lead Engineer for Geotechnical Team, reporting to the Head of Geotechnics, within the Geoscience Department in the Business Unit (BU) Offshore of BA Wind.

This is an exciting opportunity to develop and take technical leadership a sub-discipline of experts within the Geotechnical team.  You will apply your expertise to explore and characterise our offshore wind farm sites, with a focus on wind turbine and substation foundation design as well as cable and pipeline route planning. The role will involve performing early stage desk studies and feasibility assessments, planning and delivering site investigation campaigns, interpreting geotechnical data and producing technical notes/reports helping our projects mature.

You’ll be joining a diverse and high-performing team of geoscience colleagues, and you’ll be exposed to a wide variety of scenarios which will enable ongoing personal development.  This is an influential role as a proactive member of a highly capable team. It is also an exciting opportunity to support the department’s ambition of becoming a centre of excellence within the renewable's industry, exploring innovative technology, developing best practises and pushing boundaries as we help Vattenfall achieve its vision of transitioning society towards a fossil-free future.

Your role

Lead Engineers are high-level members of the team, with autonomy and responsibility for planning, managing and supplying packages of technical deliverables to our offshore wind farm projects, including desk studies, site investigations, geotechnical data interpretations and feasibility studies. In collaboration with other internal experts and external partners, you will contribute your geotechnical expertise and project delivery skills to all stages of our wind farm lifecycle from feasibility, development and design through to construction, operation and decommissioning.

This role will expose you to many aspects of the offshore wind journey and your main duties will be to:

• Represent the Geoscience team as a technical authority on geotechnical topics, able to advise, educate and inform others within and outside the organisation.
• Devise technical specifications, work scopes, budgets, strategies and processes to optimise site characterization desk studies and fieldwork campaigns.
• Plan, procure, oversee and deliver site investigation campaigns to the highest standards of health, safety and quality in collaboration with a wide network of internal specialists and trusted suppliers.
• Evaluate results for compliance with technical specifications and contracts.
• Prepare, review and approve geotechnical reports including feasibility studies and interpretative reports.
• Co-ordinate the external certification process for geotechnical outputs.
• Evaluate new technologies and methods whilst proactively supporting collaborative research and development opportunities with academic institutions and industry working groups.
• Develop procedures and deliverables to standardise the Geotechnical team’s output.
• Act as a coach and technical mentor to junior colleagues within the Geotechnical team.

Your profile / who are you? 

We are looking for someone who can show practical application of their academic knowledge and who believes in our renewables vision.  You will be able to proactively apply your knowledge in support of our strategic goals and understand the mutual benefits of doing so.  

You will have a geological or geotechnical background, with extensive project delivery experience and a collaborative, achievement-oriented focus.  You will also have a curious and innovative mindset whilst striving for efficiency and continuous improvement. You will thrive in diverse, and dynamic environments and you will be willing to help others as our supportive team helps you whilst we grow together.

In particular, we welcome applications from candidates who possess a combination of the following:

• A master’s degree or doctorate degree in civil/geotechnical engineering, with at least fifteen years relevant geotechnical experience in the renewables sector (working for a contractor, consultant or developer).  Applicants with a more operational or site-based background are also welcome to apply.
• A thorough knowledge of current site investigation practises and standard related to bottom fixed and floating wind developments (including data acquisition, laboratory testing and reporting).
• Knowledge in geotechnical software packages (e.g. PLAXIS 3D and GRLWEAP or similar) and computer programming (preferably MATLAB and/or Python).
• Proven project management skills (a recognized qualification would be beneficial) and experience of managing multi-stakeholder relationships including external subcontractors and consultants.
• Familiarity with geoscience suppliers and associated industry commercial/contractual mechanisms.
• A broad understanding of best practises in health & safety and environmental compliance (a recognised qualification would be advantageous).
• Experience in working as part of a team to integrate geological/geotechnical, geophysicaland environmental data to produce ground models and ground truth interpretations.
• A history of mentoring more junior colleagues to support their development.
• Experience of working within an international organisation as part of a diverse and geographically dispersed team.
• Fluency in spoken, and written English.

Why not start your journey to working for fossil freedom by applying now? We look forward to receiving your application 

Location  The location of this position is flexible with Kolding (DK), Hamburg (DE), London, and Hexham (UK) or Amsterdam (NL) being our preferred locations. For the right candidate however, we are willing to consider appointments within reasonable commuting distance of any of our European offices.

Our offer

Looking for a career with growth?

Looking for a role where your superpowers can be leveraged to the maximum and with limitless opportunities for growth?

The scale and ambition of our wind, battery and solar business means you can really find your element with us. We’ll also provide you with all the learning and development you need to expand your horizons.

We strive to be the best place to work in the industry with highly competitive pay and conditions and an open, supportive culture. A commitment to a healthy work-life balance aims to ensure everyone plays to their strengths, whatever their background and experiences.

You will be part of a growing team of 1,700+ colleagues from 50+ nationalities where our positive approach to diversity is reflected in the fact that more than a quarter of staff are women.

More Information 

For more information about the position you are welcome to contact hiring manager Rafaela Fernandes, rafaela.fernandes@vattenfall.com. For more information about the recruitment process you are welcome to contact our recruiter Christian Pathuel, christian.pathuel@vattenfall.com  

We welcome your application in English no later than 31.05.2024. We kindly request that you do not send applications by any means other than via our website. 

At Vattenfall we are convinced that diversity contributes to building a more profitable and attractive company and we strive to be a good role model regarding diversity. Vattenfall works actively for all employees to have the same opportunities and rights regardless of gender, ethnicity, age, transgender identity or expression, religion or other belief, disability or sexual orientation. Click here for further information. 

The security of Vattenfall and its employees is essential. For that reason, a pre-employment screening will be part of your recruitment process. The screening is based on the role you will fulfill within Vattenfall and will be performed by a third party, Validata. 

Since Vattenfall is a part of the Swedish critical infrastructure, many of our services are security classed. If this position is security classified the final candidates might be subject to a security vetting process, according to Swedish legislation. 

We look forward to receiving your application