Principal Engineer - Protection & Automation
Transpower New Zealand
Date: 1 week ago
City: Christchurch, Canterbury
Contract type: Full time
Transpower owns and operates New Zealand's National Grid — the unique high voltage transmission network that connects areas of generation with towns and cities across the country. The National Grid is connected by HVDC between our two main islands, with a large amount of renewable energy generated in the South and growing load requirement in the North.
Our core purpose is to empower the energy future of New Zealand — a future that delivers a net-zero carbon economy and a reliable, secure electricity system. Our transmission network includes over 12,000 km of transmission lines, 25,000 transmission towers and 170 substations — assets worth more than $5 billion that deliver direct benefit to Aotearoa.
Our Grid Development division is responsible for identifying and communicating future Grid needs up to 30+ years ahead, and for developing transmission asset management strategies that support our strategic objectives, as outlined in Transmission Tomorrow and Whakamana i Te Mauri Hiko.
About The Team
The Protection & Automation team, part of the Tactical Engineering group within Grid Development, is responsible for:
Play a key role in providing and guiding advanced engineering expertise within Transpower, while representing the organisation in the wider engineering community through the delivery of new and tactical projects.
Your focus will be to ensure Transpower meets its strategic objectives and delivers its major capital works programme. You'll contribute to high-profile Grid Development projects at both the conceptual and detailed design stages, including for:
What will you bring?
A Washington Accord-accredited Bachelor's degree in Engineering (or an equivalent tertiary qualification), specialising in Electrical or Power Engineering. You'll also be registered as a Chartered Professional Engineer with Engineering New Zealand (or hold an equivalent international registration).
To be shortlisted, your CV and cover letter will clearly demonstrate:
Aotearoa is powered by the people who work here. Every home, every marae, every electric vehicle, every hospital relies on the electricity we manage and deliver. This is your opportunity to join us on a mission that affects all New Zealanders, every day and long into the future.
With over 28 nationalities, our people provide diverse perspectives, knowledge, and deep and multifaceted experience which they love to share. We work in the office or on-site for a minimum of three days each week, which helps us build and maintain relationships, support learning, deliver outcomes, and sustain our culture. This approach also offers staff the flexibility they need for both work and personal commitments, with adaptable daily start and finish times.
We prioritise employee wellbeing with a range of health and wellness benefits - check them out here: Staff benefits | Transpower
Next steps
To help us deliver exceptional protection design and accelerate electrification for Aotearoa, please review the position description on our careers site at https://careers.transpower.co.nz/search and apply with your cover letter and CV without delay.
Role closes Tuesday 27 May; however applications will be reviewed as they are received, and you may be contacted before the close date for an initial informal conversation to support shortlisting.
Our core purpose is to empower the energy future of New Zealand — a future that delivers a net-zero carbon economy and a reliable, secure electricity system. Our transmission network includes over 12,000 km of transmission lines, 25,000 transmission towers and 170 substations — assets worth more than $5 billion that deliver direct benefit to Aotearoa.
Our Grid Development division is responsible for identifying and communicating future Grid needs up to 30+ years ahead, and for developing transmission asset management strategies that support our strategic objectives, as outlined in Transmission Tomorrow and Whakamana i Te Mauri Hiko.
About The Team
The Protection & Automation team, part of the Tactical Engineering group within Grid Development, is responsible for:
- Engineering and asset management investigations, design, project support, technical specifications, and cost estimation covering high voltage electricity transmission, specifically Protection & Automation, and supporting primary systems.
- Managing a range of technical controlled documents that include technical policies, design standards, protection setting templates, and secondary material procurement specifications.
- Innovating cutting-edge protection design, supported by our consulting partners, to serve a wide range of modern transmission network topologies where new generation portfolios are being introduced to meet New Zealand's rising demand.
- Providing solutions which also consider the needs of the Substations, Transmission Lines, Asset Planning, and Operations teams.
Play a key role in providing and guiding advanced engineering expertise within Transpower, while representing the organisation in the wider engineering community through the delivery of new and tactical projects.
Your focus will be to ensure Transpower meets its strategic objectives and delivers its major capital works programme. You'll contribute to high-profile Grid Development projects at both the conceptual and detailed design stages, including for:
- Transmission Series Capacitors
- Transmission Shunt Capacitors
- Transmission Static Synchronous Compensators (STATCOM)
- Greenfield Digital Substations at multiple locations - learn more here be/oUAJ_nQUl0g?si=dDxErll7aoBfY05t
What will you bring?
A Washington Accord-accredited Bachelor's degree in Engineering (or an equivalent tertiary qualification), specialising in Electrical or Power Engineering. You'll also be registered as a Chartered Professional Engineer with Engineering New Zealand (or hold an equivalent international registration).
To be shortlisted, your CV and cover letter will clearly demonstrate:
- 15+ years of relevant protection design experience
- Proven ability to lead, develop, and motivate others on complex assignments
- Strong written, verbal, and influencing skills — able to communicate complex engineering concepts to diverse audiences
- Experience providing expert advice to organisations, senior/executive leaders, and external stakeholders
- Understanding of the funding and regulatory implications of engineering decisions
- Advanced knowledge of transmission system design, planning, and strategy
- Experience in designing digital substation automation with IEC 61850 communication protocol
- Understanding of substation operational technology (OT) and capability to diagnose vulnerability and protection deficiency within, and between, substation networks
- A post-graduate tertiary qualification
Aotearoa is powered by the people who work here. Every home, every marae, every electric vehicle, every hospital relies on the electricity we manage and deliver. This is your opportunity to join us on a mission that affects all New Zealanders, every day and long into the future.
With over 28 nationalities, our people provide diverse perspectives, knowledge, and deep and multifaceted experience which they love to share. We work in the office or on-site for a minimum of three days each week, which helps us build and maintain relationships, support learning, deliver outcomes, and sustain our culture. This approach also offers staff the flexibility they need for both work and personal commitments, with adaptable daily start and finish times.
We prioritise employee wellbeing with a range of health and wellness benefits - check them out here: Staff benefits | Transpower
Next steps
To help us deliver exceptional protection design and accelerate electrification for Aotearoa, please review the position description on our careers site at https://careers.transpower.co.nz/search and apply with your cover letter and CV without delay.
Role closes Tuesday 27 May; however applications will be reviewed as they are received, and you may be contacted before the close date for an initial informal conversation to support shortlisting.
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