Senior Protection & Controls Manager

The Senior Protection & Control Manager is the primary technical authority for the design, standardization, and reliability of electrical protection systems across the offshore wind portfolio. The role connects early project development with long‑term operational needs, ensuring that onshore and offshore substations, inter‑array cables, wind turbine generators, and onshore connection points follow a unified and high‑performance protection philosophy.

A key mission of the role is to strengthen the adoption of advanced protection and control practices, including digital substation automation aligned with IEC 61850 (GOOSE messaging, Sampled Values) and the consistent implementation of protection principles across projects.

• Establish, maintain, and enforce a consistent Protection Philosophy applicable to all markets and project phases.
• Ensure uniform hardware selection, protection logic design, and engineering approach across all developments.

• Develop standardized templates and protection design packages for Onshore Substation (ONS), Offshore Substations (OSS), Wind Turbine Generators (WTG), and array cable systems.
• Promote harmonized engineering practices to streamline project execution and reduce procurement complexity.

• Lead or review complex protection studies such as relay coordination, short‑circuit calculations, impedance‑based protection tuning, and transient overvoltage (TOV) analyses.
• Ensure all studies appropriately consider the behaviour of long high‑capacitance subsea cable systems.
• Support interactions with Transmission System Operators (TSOs).
• Align project protection settings with grid‑code requirements, clearing times, and Fault‑Ride‑Through (FRT) obligations.
• Direct the RCA process for major electrical disturbances and protection failures, including the interpretation of COMTRADE and event logs.
• Define actions to prevent recurrence and improve long‑term system reliability.

• Define and oversee standards for testing, commissioning, verification, and maintenance of Protection & Control assets.
• Ensure resilient performance over the full offshore lifecycle (25+ years).

Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, Power Systems, or a related discipline is required. Master’s Degree (M. Sc. ) or PhD with specialization in Protection, Control, or Power Electronics is preferred.

English. Candidates need to be fluent in English both spoken and written. Knowledge of other languages is a plus.

A minimum of 10 years in protection and control engineering. Demonstrable experience in offshore wind or large subsea transmission systems.

Proven ability to lead engineering teams or oversee technical standards within an organization.

Experience working with manufacturers such as SEL, Siemens, ABB, or GE, and integrating IED platforms into SCADA/DCS or IEC 61850 architectures.

• IEC 61850:
  In‑depth understanding of digital substation design (GOOSE, Sampled Values).
• Subsea Cable Protection:
  Strong knowledge of high‑capacitance cable challenges including charging currents, resonance, and directional protection behaviour.
• Wind Turbine Generators:
  Understanding of how inverter‑based wind turbine generators respond to faults.
• Standards & Grid Codes:
  Familiarity with IEC 60255 series, IEEE C37 series, and applicable regional transmission requirements.

• Simulation Tools:
  Expert use of DIgSILENT Power Factory, ETAP, PSCAD, ASPEN, or comparable platforms.
• Analytical
  
  Skills:
  
  Ability to interpret fault records, identify failure modes, and propose robust corrective measures.
• Communication:
  Ability to convey complex technical risks to both engineering and non‑technical stakeholders.
• Collaboration:
  
  Strong capability to coordinate engineering activities across teams and time zones.
• Problem Solving:
  Proactive in identifying and addressing protection‑related risks in development and operations.

Location is in Madrid or Edinburgh with readiness for occasional international travel as required by project or operational needs.