Associate, Project Development

Silicon Ranch is a full-service solar energy and carbon solutions company that owns, develops, and operates utility-scale solar projects across the United States. Founded in 2011 and headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, the company has built a portfolio of more than 180 projects spanning 15 states, with over 4,000 megawatts of capacity in operation. Silicon Ranch serves a diverse customer base including commercial and industrial partners, utilities, electric cooperatives, and landowners, delivering customized renewable energy and battery storage solutions through long-term power purchase agreements. A defining aspect of Silicon Ranch's mission is its commitment to sustainability that goes beyond energy generation. Through its Regenerative Energy approach, the company actively works to restore soil health, biodiversity, water quality, and wildlife habitat at its project sites. Its agrivoltaics initiatives integrate agricultural practices with solar energy production, while its Clearloop platform helps businesses offset their carbon footprints by expanding access to clean energy in underserved communities. What sets Silicon Ranch apart is its long-term ownership model: the company retains ownership and operational responsibility for every project throughout the life of the facility, fostering deep, lasting relationships with the communities it serves. The company has a track record of delivering on every power purchase agreement it has signed since inception, and it emphasizes community investment, local economic development, and land stewardship as core pillars of its business philosophy.

 

Silicon Ranch is a fully integrated provider of customized renewable energy, carbon, and battery storage solutions for a diverse set of partners across North America.

 

• We are known for putting community partnerships first, and are the only renewable energy company in the U.S. that owns and operates all of its solar ranches and has a 100% track record for successful delivery.

 

• We have the largest utility scale agrivoltaics portfolio in the country under Regenerative Energy®, our nationally recognized holistic approach to project design, construction, and land management. Our model incorporates regenerative ranching and other regenerative land management practices to restore livelihoods and soil health, biodiversity, and water quality.

 

• Through our subsidiary, Clearloop, we are able to help businesses of all sizes reclaim their carbon footprint with a direct investment in building new solar projects while also helping bring renewable energy and economic development to distressed communities.

 

By joining Silicon Ranch, you will be joining a team of experienced and dedicated individuals who have proven time and again that it is indeed possible to not only “make solar do more”, but to make the promise of carbon-free, renewable energy that benefits people right where it comes from a tangible, measurable, and replicable reality. 

 

Silicon Ranch is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace that is reflective of the communities in which we work and serve. We are an equal opportunity employer and will consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, and other legally protected characteristics.

 

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Job Description

Position: Associate, Project Development

 

Location: Nashville, TN

 

Overview: This position will provide development and pre-construction support activities. This will require coordination with the Business Development, Interconnection, Public Affairs, and EPC teams to facilitate project needs, including site selection (as necessary to support real estate team), site due diligence, site acquisition, entitlements, environmental permitting, site assessments, budget development and management, scheduling etc. This work may require some periods of travel, generally 4-7 days per month. This position will support permitting, consulting services, engineering, reporting and the general project management required for successful project development and pre-construction support.

 

Main Responsibilities: 

• Lead project site due diligence activities, including title and mineral title review, permitting research, land development assessments, and identification of planning and zoning challenges.
• Manage the full site development lifecycle by assessing, mitigating, and monitoring project risks while ensuring development milestones are achieved on schedule.
• Partner with Interconnection, Business Development, Development Engineering, and Delivery teams to develop accurate project schedules and identify early-stage site risks.
• Develop and manage project development budgets, oversee consultant and vendor activities, and ensure all work is completed on time and within budget.
• Coordinate and oversee project development activities, including land research, environmental assessments, preliminary site design, permitting, surveys, geotechnical investigations, and pre-construction planning.
• Support project permitting efforts and represent projects during public hearings while building productive relationships with landowners, clients, utilities, government agencies, consultants, contractors, and other stakeholders.
• Assist with project contracting, design coordination, and the communication of project risks, site constraints, and development requirements to Delivery and EPC teams.
• Collaborate across multidisciplinary teams to identify client and vendor challenges, develop creative solutions, and ensure successful project advancement from site selection through pre-construction.

 

Qualifications: 

Education:

Bachelor's Degree, preferably in Energy/Land Management, Environmental Studies, or equivalent; additional educational qualifications such as a PMP or MBA considered.

Experience:

0 - 2  years of work experience in project management, land development or real estate.

Technical:

Exposure or experience to the US energy and/or renewable market desirable.

 

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Our interview process:

A typical interview process at Silicon Ranch might include the below stages. Please note that we may make changes to these steps as needed, and details will be provided to you early on in the process.

1. Introductory Interview with our recruiter
2. Hiring Manager Interview to dive into technical skills and behavioral questions
3. Panel Interview to assess cross-functional skills and dive deeper into technical skills
4. Executive Interview to answer high-level questions about SRC and the team