Staff Electrical Engineer
About the job
- A bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering is required.
- At least 8 years of experience in electrical engineering is required.
- At least 5 years of direct field experience is required.
- A valid driver's license is required.
- Advanced proficiency in electrical systems is required.
- Extensive experience commissioning electrical projects and substations up to 230 kV, and switchgear from 2.4 kV to 24.9 kV.
- Knowledge of power electronics and motor controls, including variable frequency drives, soft starts, and across-the-line starters.
- Expertise in relay settings and programming for distribution feeders, transmission lines, transformers, reclosers, and motors, including Schweitzer relays.
- Experience with large motors exceeding 5,000 horsepower and synchronous motors.
- Strong analytical capabilities to resolve complex issues.
- Familiarity with root cause analysis related to electrical failures.
- Thorough understanding of electrical safety standards outlined in NFPA 70E.
- Practical knowledge calculating arc flash hazards using IEEE 1584 guidelines.
- Skill in load transfer and switching at voltages from 480 volts to 230,000 volts, including developing field-ready switching procedures.
- Knowledge of symmetrical components and fault analysis.
- Ability to work efficiently without direct supervision.
- Willingness and ability to travel up to 200 miles from the home location and return home nearly every day.
- Provide comprehensive electrical engineering support for power distribution equipment, including start-up and troubleshooting across high-, medium-, and low-voltage substations, transformers, switchgear, motor control centers, protective relays, variable frequency drives, soft starters, and motors.
- Collaborate in the design phase of minor and major projects, performing load flow, short circuit, relay coordination, arc flash, motor start, and harmonic studies using Windmil or ETAP software.
- Develop and validate protective relay programs for SEL or Multilin relays (651R/710/351/751/387/787), and oversee or assist with relay testing via current injection using Doble.
- Establish settings for low-voltage circuit breakers and prepare protection coordination studies with ETAP or EasyPower.
- Provide expertise for solid-state power electronic devices, including low- and medium-voltage soft starts, variable frequency drives from 480 V to 12.47 kV, and excitation controls for large synchronous motors.
- Conduct system modeling to optimize efficiency, employing capacitor banks and voltage regulators within power distribution networks.
- Manage factory acceptance testing for low- and medium-voltage electrical apparatus and facilitate project start-up procedures.
- Review test outcomes for high- and low-voltage cables and motors, and transformer tests including CT polarity/ratio, insulation, impulse, heating, applied, and induced voltage tests.
- Assess switchgear and breaker testing, including timing, contact resistance, and insulation performance on high- and low-voltage systems.
- Spend over 60% of working hours in the field.
- Exceptional verbal, written, listening, and presentation communication skills.
About the company
Occidental Petroleum produces and sells oil and natural gas to energy customers in the United States and overseas. Its portfolio spans the Permian Basin and the Rockies, offshore Gulf of America fields, and the Al Hosn Gas project in the United Arab Emirates. It earns revenue from selling these commodities, while its marketing business also buys third-party crude to make use of pipeline and export terminal capacity. Its subsidiaries 1PointFive and Carbon Engineering develop direct air capture technology and industrial projects to remove carbon dioxide from the air and store it underground. Founded in 1920, Occidental is headquartered in Houston, Texas.
Company Size
10,001+
Company Stage
IPO
Headquarters
Houston, Texas
Founded
1920
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Simplify's Take
What believers are saying
- Eligible full-time non-union employees build retirement savings immediately: Oxy's 7% 401(k) match vests upon hire.
- Technical specialists have advancement options: STEP gives technical contributors a career ladder without moving into management.
- Debt pressure eased: August 2026 results reported a $1.9 billion reduction in principal debt, to $11.8 billion.
What critics are saying
- Field employees face physical hazards: Occidental identifies blowouts, fires and explosions among risks to its workforce.
- Budgets depend on oil prices: Occidental says its capital allocation adapts to commodity fluctuations.
- Chemical liabilities outlast ownership: Occidental retained legacy OxyChem claims and expects remediation spending over many years.
What makes Occidental Petroleum unique
- Carbon recovery runs on established infrastructure: Oxy lists 2,500 miles of CO2 pipeline access and eight recycling plants.
- Field power includes dedicated solar: the 16-megawatt Goldsmith plant directly powers Texas oil recovery operations.
- Water logistics use pipelines: Oxy's Colorado Water on Demand system supplies field operations while avoiding truck deliveries.
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Benefits
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Growth & Insights and Company News
6 month growth
6%1 year growth
6%2 year growth
6%Occidental Petroleum generates free cash flow equal to 7.8% of its market value a year, against 4.4% for the median S&P 500 company. Adjusted for net debt, the yield is 6.7%. Over the last twelve months, operations brought in $11.0 billion and capital projects took $6.2 billion. Free cash flow of $4.8 billion is down from $6.1 billion a year earlier and $8.4 billion three years ago. Operating margin rose to 27.1% from 17.8% two years earlier. The company cut principal debt by $1.5 billion to $11.8 billion, and aims to reach $10 billion. Operating profit covers interest 5.7 times. Commodity prices and a roughly 25% annual decline in existing wells threaten cash generation. Management targets slowing that decline to 20% by 2030, but has not yet achieved it.
Occidental Petroleum (OXY) shares have moved against the S&P 500 over the past year, though only since March 2026. Before that, and over five years, the stock mostly moved with the market. On an average day when the index gained 0.65%, a $10,000 Occidental holding lost about $30. On an average down day of 0.6%, it gained about $67. Even so, the stock fell on each of the index's three worst days; on the worst, it dropped 5.3% against the index's 2.7%. Occidental's volatility was 35.3% over the past year, against 13.0% for the index. Over five years it returned 15.6% a year versus 14.1% for the S&P 500, but its return per unit of volatility was 0.41, against 0.82 for the index. Oil and gas brought in $20.9 billion of its $21.6 billion fiscal 2025 revenue. Principal debt has fallen to $11.8 billion, the lowest since the second quarter of 2019.
Chevron and Occidental Petroleum offer investors different bets on energy in 2026. Chevron is a fully integrated giant; Occidental focuses on exploration and production, with a push into carbon capture. In FY 2025, Chevron's revenue fell about 4.6% to nearly $184.4 billion, with net income near $12.3 billion and free cash flow of about $16.6 billion. Occidental's revenue dropped about 20.3% to nearly $21.6 billion, with net income of about $2.4 billion and free cash flow near $4.1 billion. Occidental has the edge on valuation, with a forward P/E of 9.4x against Chevron's 12.7x. It also posted a five-year average operating margin of 38%, versus 16.5% for Chevron. Chevron offers a 3.4% dividend yield and 39 straight years of increases. Occidental yields 1.8%.
Occidental Petroleum has shifted its message from acquisitions to cash flow. On its fiscal Q2 2026 earnings call in August, management outlined a plan to add more than $4 billion of annual sustainable cash flow by 2030. Two years ago, it led with the integration of CrownRock. Part of the plan relies on advanced recovery projects that extract more oil from existing fields. Management expects sustaining capital to fall by $900 million and interest costs to drop as debt shrinks. It said about 85% of the improvement should hold even at lower prices. Principal debt stood at $11.8 billion, with a near-term target of $10 billion. Occidental has already cut annualised interest by about $630 million, against roughly $740 million in expected savings at that level. Its stock trades at 8.3 times earnings, against 21.9 for the S&P 500.
Occidental Petroleum trades at 8.0 times earnings as of October 2026, a steep discount to the S&P 500's 21.5 multiple. The oil and gas producer converted 50.6% of revenue into operating cash flow over the past twelve months, with a 27.1% operating margin exceeding the S&P 500's 18.5%. However, revenue fell for three consecutive years through fiscal 2025 before rebounding 7.3% in the last twelve months. The current low valuation also includes a one-time $3.2 billion after-tax gain from selling its OxyChem business to Berkshire Hathaway. Without this gain, the stock would trade at roughly 14 times earnings. Management is prioritising debt reduction, targeting $10 billion in principal debt, and aims to generate over $4 billion in additional annual sustainable cash flow by 2030.