Thermal Energy Director

About the Role

Mott MacDonald is expanding its Energy Sector team in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and is seeking a Thermal Energy Director. This full-time role involves leading and growing the thermal energy business within the Kingdom. The Director will provide senior technical leadership, manage client engagement, oversee project delivery, and drive business development initiatives.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the technical delivery of complex thermal energy and energy-transition projects across Saudi Arabia and the wider Middle East.
• Act as Project Director or Principal on strategically important assignments.
• Provide senior technical direction for Owner’s Engineer, Technical Advisory, studies, concept design, FEED, detailed engineering design, and asset-management assignments.
• Build and maintain trusted relationships with clients, partners, and senior stakeholders in Saudi Arabia’s energy market.
• Identify and develop new business opportunities in thermal energy and energy transition to support business growth.
• Lead and contribute to significant technical and commercial proposals, integrating local, regional, and global expertise.
• Mobilise and collaborate with multidisciplinary teams across Saudi Arabia, the Middle East, and the global Energy network.
• Support the Middle East Energy team in meeting operational and business objectives through project leadership and commercial awareness.
• Mentor and develop technical capability within the Energy team, sharing knowledge with colleagues across various experience levels and sectors.
• Champion high standards of technical quality, professional integrity, health and safety, collaboration, and continuous improvement.

Required Qualifications and Experience

• Degree-qualified in an engineering discipline relevant to thermal energy.
• A substantial track record (10+ years) in the energy sector, with strong technical expertise in thermal power generation and associated projects.
• Proven experience leading complex, multidisciplinary energy projects and technical teams across relevant project lifecycle stages.
• Strong understanding of engineering delivery, including Owner’s Engineer and Technical Advisory assignments.
• Demonstrable ability to develop trusted relationships and engage effectively with clients, project partners, and senior stakeholders.
• Strong leadership, communication, and influencing skills, with the ability to collaborate successfully across diverse teams.
• Commercial awareness, with experience contributing to business development, opportunity identification, and technical and commercial proposals.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to convey complex technical matters clearly.
• Sound knowledge of relevant professional and international engineering standards.

Desirable Attributes

• Experience working on large energy projects in Saudi Arabia or the wider Middle East.
• Experience with thermal Independent Power Producer (IPP) developments.
• Experience contributing to business growth, market development, or major client relationships.
• Experience working across international or globally distributed technical teams.
• Broader understanding of the changing energy landscape and the interface between conventional generation and energy-transition technologies, including hydrogen, carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS), and power-to-gas.

Work Environment

This role is based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and involves working within Mott MacDonald's expanding Energy Sector team. The position requires collaboration with multidisciplinary teams locally, regionally, and globally.