Balance of Plant Performance Engineer, Industrial

Tesla’s industrial energy fleet is one of the largest and most actively operated battery fleets in the world. When these assets underperform, renewable generation is curtailed, customers can lose thousands of dollars an hour, fossil fuels are used to fill the gap, and grids face higher blackout risk. As a member of the Industrial Product Engineering team, you will own the uptime of this critical infrastructure, specifically the low- and medium-voltage Balance of Plant outside the battery enclosure: protection relays, transformers, switchgear, breakers, and the control and communications circuits that keep sites safe and online.

In this cross-functional role, you will work closely with design, manufacturing, project engineering, field service, technical support, firmware, system test, and SCADA/network operations to ensure Tesla Energy customers receive industry-leading service and system availability worldwide. If you enjoy solving real-world protection and power-system problems from first principles, working with a close-knit team, and making a tangible impact on the clean energy transition, this is the role for you.

Own fleet reliability for low- and medium-voltage Balance of Plant: protection relays, ring-main units, switchgear, transformers, circuit breakers, safety interlocks, and the path from field instrumentation through the relay into the plant controller Lead fleet-wide investigations of relay operations, misoperations, nuisance trips, and equipment failures. Trace root cause using single-line diagrams, control wiring, relay settings, sequential event records, protection event files, IEC 61850 GOOSE captures, fleet telemetry, oscillography, substation SCADA data, and first-principles engineering; quantify impact and drive permanent hardware, firmware, or process fixes across the global fleet Lead product and design changes with partner teams on switchgear design, integration and monitoring, safety interlocks, and isolation compliance, distilling multi-system issues into clear requirements for hardware, manufacturing, firmware, networking, and field teams Design relay settings for the fleet that meet compliance, safety, and protection requirements Define and execute fault-injection and integration tests across relays, switchgear, power supplies, trip circuits, GOOSE messaging, time synchronization, and control wiring; feed results into commissioning automation, automated detection, and regression coverage Drive proven solutions into automated ticketing, documentation, and technical support for field and support teams.

Communicate root cause and resolution clearly to commercial and utility customers, and lead testing at critical operating sites Build tools and write software (Python, SQL, configuration profiles, and analysis notebooks) that accelerate diagnosis, detection, and fleet-impact analysis of Balance of Plant and microgrid failures Degree in Electrical Engineering, Power Systems Engineering, or equivalent experience 3+ years in one or more of: protection engineering, power-system or substation engineering, battery energy-storage commissioning, reliability engineering, or maintenance of medium-voltage generation or storage facilities Working knowledge of medium-voltage protection and Balance of Plant equipment: industrial relays (SEL, ABB, or equivalent), transformers, switchgear, breakers, and trip circuits, as well as IEC 61850 GOOSE, DNP3, and Modbus Ability to read schematics, protection settings, and event records, and to reason from first principles about why a relay tripped, a breaker failed to open, or a site islanded Proficiency with Python, SQL, or equivalent tools for data analysis on large datasets Demonstrated ability to work cross-functionally with design, manufacturing, commissioning, field service, and firmware teams Excellent written and verbal communication, including customer-facing root-cause reports, technical diagrams, and field procedures Ability to prioritize and execute multiple projects in parallel; self-directed, highly detail-oriented, and organized Willingness to travel domestically up to 15% of the time, occasionally on short notice, including work at operating sites and periodic on-call 24/7 support of external customers Benefits Along with competitive pay, as a full-time Tesla employee, you are eligible for the following benefits at day 1 of hire: Medical plans > plan options with $0 payroll deduction Family-building, fertility, adoption and surrogacy benefits Dental (including orthodontic coverage) and vision plans, both have options with a $0 paycheck contribution Company Paid (Health Savings Accounts) HSA Contribution when enrolled in the High-Deductible medical plan with HSA Healthcare and Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) 401(k) with employer match, Employee Stock Purchase Plans, and other financial benefits Company paid Basic Life, AD&D Short-term and long-term disability insurance (90 day waiting period) Employee Assistance Program Sick and Vacation time (Flex time for salary positions, Accrued hours for Hourly positions), and Paid Holidays Back-up childcare and parenting support resources Voluntary benefits to include: critical illness, hospital indemnity, accident insurance, theft & legal services, and pet insurance Weight Loss and Tobacco Cessation Programs Tesla Babies program Commuter benefits Employee discounts and perks program Earned Wage Access: Real-time pay access paid daily, subject to eligibility and schedule (applicable for below Sr.

Managers levels) Expected Compensation $100,000 - $408,000/annual salary + cash and stock awards + benefits Pay offered may vary depending on multiple individualized factors, including market location, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. The total compensation package for this position may also include other elements dependent on the position offered. Details of participation in these benefit plans will be provided if an employee receives an offer of employment.