Development Associate

Job Description

About Us   

At Ocean Renewable Power Company (ORPC), we believe that rivers and tides can play a key role in the transition to clean and sustainable energy. By joining our team, you will be making a tangible contribution to the deployment of renewable energy solutions that help communities reduce their reliance on fossil fuels and build a more resilient energy future. With a unique track record in the development and operation of marine energy projects that have already delivered electricity to the grid, ORPC continues to expand to make renewable energy accessible in many parts of the world. For more information, visit  

About The Position  

We are seeking a Development Associate to join our team, based out of our Anchorage, Alaska office. The Development Associate is an early to mid-level career role for a commercially minded professional who combines quantitative rigor with strong interpersonal skills. Under the direction of the Alaska Development Director and in collaboration with the VP of Development, the Analyst supports three core functions: stakeholder and customer engagement across ORPC’s Alaska pipeline; financial modeling to evaluate project economics and funding structures; and commercial development and pipeline support to advance prospects from initial engagement through project development. This is a high-visibility, high-impact role in a mission-driven company at the frontier of marine renewable energy. 

What You’ll Do  

Customer & Stakeholder Engagement  

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• Serve as a consistent working-level point of contact for prospect communities, cooperatives, utility partners, and other project partners, maintaining regular communication and relationship continuity while escalating commitments, negotiations, and material decisions to the Alaska Development Director. 
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• Research and profile prospective customers — including remote community utilities, Alaska Native Corporations (ANCs), village energy cooperatives, industrial operators, and state agencies — to develop tailored engagement strategies and value propositions. 
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• Support the Alaska Development Director in outreach to Alaska Native Corporations, Tribal organizations, village councils, and other regional and community partners, preparing engagement materials that emphasize community benefit, fish-friendly design, and long-term partnership framing. 
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• Prepare briefing documents, one-pagers, and stakeholder presentations for meetings with AVEC, AEA, AIDEA, Denali Commission, and DOE program officers. 
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• Support engagement with local, state, and federal elected officials and their staff, including preparing briefings, coordinating meetings and site visits, and communicating ORPC project priorities, community benefits, and funding needs. 
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• Coordinate and manage stakeholder and community engagement activities for projects, including engagement planning, meeting coordination, deliverable and milestone tracking, documentation, and collaboration with project teams to ensure community engagement commitments are completed on schedule and in alignment with funding requirements. 
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• Track and document all stakeholder interactions, maintaining accurate records of contact history, action items, and relationship status across the prospect pipeline. 
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• Represent ORPC at Alaska energy industry events (REAP, Alaska Sustainable Energy Conference, Railbelt Reliability Council forums), supporting relationship development and brand visibility. 
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Financial Modeling & Project Economics  

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• Develop, maintain, and support financial models to evaluate project economics for Alaska hydrokinetic deployments, including levelized cost of energy (LCOE) analysis, annual energy production (AEP) estimates, and sensitivity analysis across device configurations and velocity profiles. 
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• Model project funding structures using layered public finance sources: AEA Renewable Energy Fund, AIDEA, Denali Commission, USDA RUS/REAP, DOE programs, and federal tax credits (ITC/PTC) quantifying the impact of each source on project cost of capital and developer returns. 
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• Support grant application financial sections, including budget justification, cost share documentation, FCR-based LCOE calculations (DOE standard 0.108, 20-year project life), and milestone-based budget tracking. 
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• Develop customer-facing economic analyses that quantify ORPC technology value against status-quo diesel generation, translating technical outputs into decision-ready business cases for community utilities and industrial customers. 
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• Assist in preparation of DOE cost share tracking and cooperative agreement financial reporting in coordination with the Finance team. 
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• Conduct market sizing and addressable market analysis for specific Alaska prospects and geographies, including remote community energy cost benchmarking, resource potential quantification, and competitive positioning. 
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Sales Support & Pipeline Development  

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• Maintain current and accurate information for ORPC’s Alaska prospect pipeline and support advancement of each opportunity through defined development stages, from initial contact through LOI or MOU execution and project development award, in coordination with the Alaska Development Director. 
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• Prepare sales materials and proposal components — including project briefs, capability statements, concept papers, and draft LOIs — tailored to each prospect’s decision-making context and funding environment. 
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• Support the Alaska Development Director in identifying, qualifying, and prioritizing new prospects from ORPC’s Alaska pipeline with research-driven recommendations on engagement sequencing. 
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• Coordinate with R&D, Operations, and Finance to develop technically grounded, commercially compelling project proposals and funding applications. 
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• Identify and track relevant federal and state funding opportunities for Alaska projects, including NOFO monitoring and preliminary eligibility assessment, and prepare go/no-go recommendations for review by the Alaska Development Director and other designated decision-makers. 
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• Support proposal development for DOE Hydropower and Hydrokinetic Office, DOE Office of Indian Energy, ARPA-E, and other relevant federal energy programs as funding priorities and program availability evolve. 
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Cross-Functional & Administrative Support  

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• Use approved AI tools, consistent with ORPC’s intellectual property and confidentiality guardrails, to support stakeholder research, grant narrative drafting, market analysis, and meeting preparation while maintaining sound judgement, data protection, and accountability. 
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• Contribute to Alaska Development team’s internal reporting, including status updates, milestone tracking, pipeline dashboards, and leadership briefings. 
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What You Bring to the Team  

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• Strong quantitative and Excel skills required; experience developing or working with LCOE, NPV/IRR, project finance, or energy-economic models strongly preferred.  
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• Experience with federal grant programs, cooperative agreements, or public-private funding structures is a significant plus; DOE or USDA program familiarity particularly valued. 
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• CRM experience preferred (NetSuite or similar); comfort with data management and pipeline tracking. 
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• Experience working with or in rural, remote, or tribal community contexts strongly preferred; Alaska experience a plus. 
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• Familiarity with Alaska energy programs (PCE, AEA REF, AIDEA, Denali Commission) or willingness to develop this knowledge rapidly. 
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Qualifications  

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• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Economics, Environmental Studies, Engineering, or related discipline required. 
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• 2–5 years of relevant experience in business development, project finance, energy consulting, rural development, or related field; energy sector experience preferred. 
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Work Environment & Physical Demands  

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• This position is based in Anchorage, AK with the expectation of 3 days in office. 
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• 10-20% Regular travel within Alaska (village communities, Railbelt, Aleutians) and to ORPC headquarters in Portland, ME is expected. 
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• Remote travel may involve small aircraft, boats, extreme weather conditions, limited services and remote field conditions 
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• Prolonged periods of desk and computer work; ability to lift up to 15 pounds. 
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• Employees must read, understand, and comply with all ORPC safety policies and procedures. 
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Why ORPC?  

At ORPC, we believe in the power of human ingenuity and the importance of ecological stewardship. We offer a collaborative culture where your voice is heard and your safety is our top priority. Join us in building a sustainable world, one project at a time. ORPC offers a competitive pay and benefits package. 

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• 401(k) 
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• Dental insurance 
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• Employee assistance program 
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• Flexible schedule 
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• Health insurance 
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• Life insurance 
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• Retirement plan 
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• Vision insurance 
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Pay: $70,000 to $80,000