Plant Maintenance Engineer📣 Job Ad

About Saudi Gold Refinery Co.

Saudi Gold Refinery (SGR) is a Saudi mining and precious-metals company specializing in the refining of gold and precious metals, bullion production, and value-added services. Operating within the Kingdom’s mining value chain, SGR aligns with Vision 2030 and adheres to regulatory frameworks set by the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources (MIM), along with applicable Saudi and international standards. The company produces responsibly sourced, traceable, and certified bullion, operating to LBMA Good Delivery and ISO-aligned quality standards.

The Role of Plant Maintenance Engineer

Saudi Gold Refinery Co. is seeking a Plant Maintenance Engineer for a full-time position in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This role is crucial for ensuring the mechanical and electrical reliability of gold refining and bullion production assets. The engineer will execute preventive and corrective maintenance plans for critical equipment, including acid plants, electrolytic cells, and casting lines, to drive operational continuity and minimize unplanned downtime. Reporting directly to the Plant Superintendent, this position requires a proactive approach to asset management, contractor supervision, and safety compliance within a 24/7 industrial operating environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and implement comprehensive preventive maintenance schedules for critical refining machinery, including Miller process furnaces, Wohlwill cells, and auxiliary systems, to ensure consistent production output.
• Lead rapid response efforts for equipment failures, diagnose root causes of mechanical and electrical faults, and implement permanent solutions to prevent recurrence and restore operational capacity within defined timeframes.
• Enforce strict adherence to Permit-to-Work and Lockout/Tagout procedures for all maintenance activities involving hazardous energy sources, ensuring work permits are correctly issued, monitored, and closed in accordance with SGR HSE policies.
• Supervise external maintenance contractors to ensure their work meets SGR’s technical specifications and safety standards, evaluating performance regularly and addressing deviations immediately.
• Utilize reliability-centered maintenance principles to extend the lifecycle of plant assets, optimize maintenance costs, analyze failure data, and implement engineering improvements.
• Manage the inventory of critical spare parts to balance operational readiness with cost efficiency, coordinating with procurement for timely material availability while minimizing excess stock levels.
• Maintain accurate maintenance records and calibration certificates to support internal audits and external regulatory inspections, ensuring compliance with SASO standards and LBMA requirements.
• Update and maintain technical drawings, manuals, and maintenance logs in the central document control system, ensuring operational staff have access to current and accurate equipment information.
• Participate in the investigation of maintenance-related incidents and near misses to identify systemic issues, developing and tracking corrective actions to enhance safety culture.
• Monitor maintenance expenditures against the approved annual budget, report variances to management, and identify cost-saving opportunities through improved practices and localized sourcing.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical, Mining, or Industrial Engineering from an accredited institution.
• At least five years of relevant experience in maintenance engineering within the mining sector.
• Strong technical knowledge of rotating equipment, hydraulic systems, and high-voltage electrical infrastructure.
• Proficiency in using Computerized Maintenance Management Systems (CMMS) for planning and tracking work orders.
• In-depth understanding of occupational health and safety regulations, including Permit-to-Work (PTW) and Lockout/Tagout (LOTO) protocols.
• Ability to read and interpret complex engineering drawings, P&IDs, and technical manuals.
• Excellent command of English for technical communication and reporting; Arabic language skills are preferred.
• Valid Saudi driving license and willingness to work on-call rotations for emergency maintenance support.

Preferred Skills and Certifications

• Professional certification in maintenance and reliability, such as CMRP or CRL.
• Training in Root Cause Analysis techniques, including Six Sigma or TapRoot.
• Previous experience managing multicultural teams and external contractors in a Saudi industrial setting.

Performance Metrics

Success in this role will be measured against the following key performance indicators:

• Planned maintenance compliance rate exceeding 90 percent for all critical production assets.
• Reduction of unplanned downtime by 15 percent compared to the previous annual baseline.
• Zero recordable safety incidents within the maintenance department during the evaluation period.
• Maintenance budget variance remaining within plus or minus 5 percent of the approved annual forecast.
• Improvement of spare parts inventory turnover ratio by 10 percent through optimized stock levels.
• Contractor performance scores averaging above 85 percent on quarterly safety and quality evaluations.