Director, Project Development SE/Mid-West

Job Description

Southeast/Midwest Director/Sr Director, Development

Location: Remote – Candidates preferred who live in the mid-west, south, and southeast. However, all qualified candidates will be considered.

Reports to: EVP Development

Level: Director or Sr Dir, based on experience

Company Overview

Why BrightNight?

BIG PROJECTS. BIG MOMENTUM. BIG OPPORTUNITY. BIG LONG TERM INCENTIVE PLAN!

You've spent years developing renewable energy projects. You know what it takes to solve the hard problems and turn an idea into a financeable project. But are you getting the opportunity and the financial upside you deserve for that work?

At BrightNight, we're building an energy infrastructure business with serious scale and momentum. For developers who want to do the work, see projects become reality and participate in the value they create, this is a chance to make a move that matters.

Here’s why your next move should be BrightNight

\n
• Build Projects. Build Wealth. Our compelling Long-Term Incentive Plan (LTIP) offers the potential to participate in the value we create together. This is about more than your next paycheck, it could be a meaningful long-term financial opportunity.
\n
• Capital to Execute. With an expanded corporate credit facility of up to $850 million and relationships with leading financial institutions, BrightNight has the financial resources to pursue ambitious projects.
\n
• A 30 GW Development Portfolio. Our publicly announced 30 GW portfolio and more than 10 GW of safe-harbored projects mean substantial opportunity to advance utility-scale energy infrastructure.
\n
• Projects That Actually Get Built. With projects progressing through financing and construction, our development work is becoming real infrastructure and not just another pipeline presentation.
\n
• Do What You Do Best. This is a hands-on development role. Solve problems, clear hurdles, secure milestones and move projects toward PPAs. You do not need to lead a large team to make a big impact.
\n
• Grow With the Business. Help shape BrightNight’s next chapter while building your own. Your contributions matter, and the LTIP offers potential participation in the success you help deliver.
\n

The bottom line

You can keep developing projects somewhere else. Or you can join a company with the pipeline, capital, ambition and momentum to take your career, and potentially your financial future, to another level.

BrightNight. Build Something Big. Share in the Opportunity.

BrightNight is a high-growth renewable power developer and Independent Power Producer (IPP) with a 30-gigawatt portfolio spanning 20 U.S. states. The company develops innovative, dispatchable, and hybrid energy solutions that deliver reliable, cost-efficient renewable power to utilities, data centers, and other high-demand customers across fast-growing energy markets.

Supported by strong financial partners, experienced industry leadership, and proprietary capabilities such as PowerAlpha®, BrightNight is scaling rapidly while differentiating itself through an AI-enabled, automation-driven approach to project development and operations. We are building a company where intelligence is built in, not bolted on - and where smart, curious people can take on meaningful responsibility, grow quickly, and help shape the future of reliable clean energy.

Position Summary

BrightNight is seeking an experienced renewable energy developer to lead utility-scale projects within the Southwest region. This individual will take ownership of projects in the pre-PPA stage, advancing utility-scale solar, battery energy storage, and hybrid renewable energy projects through the critical development activities required to position them for successful offtake and PPA execution.

The Director will serve as the primary development owner for assigned projects, working closely with Project Engineering and Origination to bring together the technical, commercial, interconnection, land, permitting, and other development elements necessary to create competitive, executable projects. The role will be accountable for identifying development risks, resolving critical-path issues, and driving projects toward commercial readiness and PPA execution.

Following PPA execution, primary project ownership will transition to BrightNight's execution team. The Developer will ensure an effective handoff and remain available to provide development knowledge, continuity, and targeted support when needed.

This is a hands-on role for an experienced developer who understands what it takes to turn an early- or mid-stage opportunity into a commercially viable project. The successful candidate will combine strong development fundamentals with commercial judgment, regional market knowledge, and the ability to lead cross-functional teams toward clear project outcomes.

The role may lead development activities in the West, Southwest, Pacific Northwest, Mid-West, or another priority BrightNight market, depending on the candidate's experience and the needs of the business. Candidates may work remotely from anywhere in the United States, with a preference for individuals who have meaningful experience and relationships in the markets they will cover.

Key Responsibilities

\n
• Lead a portfolio of utility-scale solar, battery energy storage, and hybrid projects within an assigned U.S. region, with accountability for advancing projects from early/mid-stage development through PPA execution.
\n
• Serve as the development owner for assigned projects, establishing project strategy, priorities, budgets, and critical milestones required to reach commercial readiness.
\n
• Work closely with Project Engineering and Origination to shape projects that are technically executable, commercially competitive, and responsive to utility, data center, and other customer requirements.
\n
• Partner with Origination to position projects for utility RFPs, bilateral opportunities, corporate and data center customers, and other offtake opportunities, supporting commercial strategy and negotiations through PPA execution.
\n
• Partner with Project Engineering to evaluate project configuration, technology, site constraints, preliminary design, cost assumptions, and other technical factors that influence project competitiveness and commercial strategy.
\n
• Lead and coordinate key pre-PPA development workstreams, including site control, land, permitting and entitlements, environmental diligence, interconnection, transmission, and community engagement.
\n
• Drive the cross-functional project team toward key development and commercial milestones, identifying dependencies, resolving critical-path issues, and maintaining accountability across workstreams.
\n
• Work closely with Interconnection and Transmission teams to understand queue position, study results, network upgrade requirements, costs, timing, curtailment risk, and other factors affecting project viability and commercial positioning.
\n
• Evaluate development risks and tradeoffs and recommend strategies that balance project economics, timing, probability of success, capital requirements, and commercial opportunity.
\n
• Support project valuation, investment decisions, and PPA pricing by providing accurate development assumptions, risks, schedules, and cost inputs.
\n
• Upon PPA execution, lead a disciplined handoff to the execution team, ensuring key development history, commitments, risks, assumptions, and outstanding items are effectively transferred.
\n

Qualifications

\n
• Approximately 6-15+ years of progressive renewable energy, power, infrastructure, or related development experience, with significant experience developing utility-scale generation projects in the United States.
\n
• Demonstrated track record advancing utility-scale renewable energy projects from early or mid-stage development through offtake/PPA execution.
\n
• Significant experience with utility-scale solar and/or battery energy storage; experience with hybrid solar + storage projects strongly preferred.
\n
• Deep understanding of pre-PPA utility-scale project development, including site control, permitting, environmental diligence, interconnection, transmission, project design, offtake strategy, project economics, and development risk management.
\n
• Demonstrated ability to independently own complex projects and lead cross-functional teams toward defined development and commercial milestones.
\n
• Strong knowledge of at least one major U.S. power market or region, including utilities, regulatory and permitting environments, interconnection processes, commercial dynamics, and key market participants.
\n
• Experience working closely with Origination and Engineering teams to position renewable energy projects for utility RFPs, bilateral opportunities, PPAs, or other commercial arrangements.
\n
• Strong commercial and financial acumen with the ability to understand project economics, development budgets, PPA pricing considerations, and investment tradeoffs.
\n
• Ability to identify critical development risks early, develop practical mitigation strategies, and make sound decisions with incomplete information.
\n
• Demonstrated leadership capabilities, including experience leading cross-functional project teams and/or managing and developing other renewable energy professionals.
\n

What Sets You Apart

\n
• You are a project developer and owner who understands how to take a promising project and turn it into a commercially viable opportunity capable of securing a PPA.
\n
• You know which development issues matter most before a project goes to market and can focus teams and resources on resolving the issues that determine project competitiveness and executability.
\n
• You work naturally at the intersection of Development, Project Engineering, and Origination, translating technical and development realities into a project that can win in the market.
\n
• You understand how land, permitting, interconnection, transmission, project configuration, customer requirements, and economics interact and can make informed tradeoffs across those workstreams.
\n
• You can look across a regional portfolio and determine which projects have the strongest path to commercialization - and where BrightNight should invest its time and development capital.
\n
• You create momentum. When a project encounters a problem, you identify the path forward, bring the right people together, and drive the issue to resolution.
\n
• You are collaborative and low-ego but willing to challenge assumptions, escalate issues, and recommend a clear course of action.
\n

BrightNight Offers

\n
• The opportunity to help shape a regional development portfolio within a rapidly growing U.S. renewable IPP.
\n
• Direct responsibility for moving utility-scale solar, storage, and hybrid projects from development opportunities to commercially contracted projects.
\n
• Close partnership with Project Engineering and Origination to develop differentiated projects designed around the needs of utilities, data centers, and other major power customers.
\n
• Direct exposure to senior leadership and the opportunity to influence major project development and investment decisions.
\n
• The ability to work across some of the most dynamic U.S. power markets as demand for reliable power grows rapidly.
\n
• Meaningful responsibility from day one and the opportunity to help build BrightNight's development organization, processes, and regional strategy as the company scales.
\n
• The opportunity to help create projects that deliver reliable, resilient, and affordable clean power.
\n

BrightNight is committed to building a high-performance, collaborative team. Qualified candidates whose experience aligns with the core capabilities of the role are encouraged to apply.

Equal Employment Opportunity

BrightNight is an Equal Opportunity Employer and considers all qualified applicants without regard to legally protected status.

Work Authorization

Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States without current or future employer sponsorship unless otherwise stated.

At-Will Employment

Employment is at will and may be terminated by either the employee or the Company at any time, with or without cause or notice, subject to applicable law.

Reasonable Accommodation

BrightNight is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities throughout the hiring process and employment.