Instrumentation and Control Engineer - Remote Control Room Project

Overview

Location: Ankara (headquarter) with possible travel to various hydropower plant sites across Türkiye (Reşadiye Cascade on Kelkit River, Alpaslan 2, Karakurt, Aralık, Hamzalı, and others)

Department: Engineering / Operations & Maintenance / Digitalization & Automation

Reports to: Electromechanical Works Director

Job Overview

Energo-Pro Türkiye operates a portfolio of approximately 8 hydropower plants with a total installed capacity of 475 MW, including run-of-river and reservoir-based facilities such as the Reşadiye Cascade (multiple stages), Alpaslan 2 (280 MW), Karakurt, and others.

We are seeking an experienced I&C Engineer to join our team supporting the Central Remote Control Room (CRCR) project. This strategic initiative aims to establish a centralized operations center in Ankara (or nearby) for remote monitoring, supervision, and control of our cascade and standalone hydro power plants. The role focuses on integration of SCADA/automation systems, enabling efficient, safe, and reliable centralized operation of geographically dispersed assets to optimize generation, reduce O&M costs, improve response times, and enhance overall fleet performance.

Responsibilities

• Participate in the design, specification, implementation, testing, and commissioning of the central SCADA/DCS system and related communication infrastructure for remote control of multiple hydropower plants.
• Support integration of local plant control systems (PLC-based turbine governors, excitation systems, protection relays, auxiliary systems) with the central remote platform.
• Develop and configure HMI screens, alarm management, trending, historical data archiving, and reporting functionalities tailored to hydro operations (water level, flow, turbine status, grid synchronization, etc.).
• Ensure secure and reliable communication between remote sites and the central control room (fiber, MPLS, satellite backup, VPN, redundancy concepts).
• Perform cybersecurity assessments and implement measures in line with industry standards (IEC 62443, NERC CIP principles adapted to local regulations).
• Collaborate with plant electrical/mechanical teams, vendors (e.g., turbine/governor suppliers, SCADA providers), and IT/OT specialists during system integration and FAT/SAT phases.
• Support migration from local autonomous operation to centralized remote control mode, including development of operating procedures, failover scenarios, and operator training.
• Troubleshoot and resolve complex I&C issues across the fleet during project execution and after go-live (on-call support may be required).
• Contribute to project documentation: functional specifications, control narratives, I/O lists, loop diagrams, cause & effect matrices, test protocols.
• Monitor system performance post-implementation, propose improvements, and support predictive maintenance initiatives using data analytics.
• Ensure compliance with Turkish energy regulations (EPDK, TEİAŞ grid code), international standards (IEC 61850, IEEE), and Energo-Pro internal policies.

Qualifications & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Control & Instrumentation Engineering, Mechatronics, or related field (Master’s degree is a plus).
• Minimum 5–8 years of hands-on experience in I&C engineering, preferably in hydropower, power generation, or heavy industry.
• Proven experience with SCADA systems (e.g., Siemens WinCC, Ignition, AVEVA, GE iFIX, or similar) and PLC programming (Siemens TIA Portal / S7, Allen-Bradley, Schneider, etc.).
• Strong knowledge of hydro-specific control systems: turbine governors (speed/frequency/active power control), excitation/AVR, unit synchronization, water management logic, spillway/gate control.
• Familiarity with industrial communication protocols:
  Modbus TCP/RTU, IEC 60870-5-104/101, IEC 61850, OPC UA, Profibus/Profinet, Ethernet/IP.
• Experience in remote monitoring/control projects or centralized operation centers for geographically distributed assets (multi-plant hydro fleets preferred).
• Understanding of OT cybersecurity principles and network segmentation.
• Willingness to travel to plant sites (East Anatolia, Black Sea region, etc.) for site surveys, commissioning, and support.

Preferred Skills

• Experience with hydro cascade optimization and coordinated control strategies.
• Knowledge of Turkish electricity market rules, YEKDEM/YEK-G mechanisms, and grid code requirements.
• Familiarity with historian databases (OSIsoft PI, Influx
  
  DB) and basic data analytics tools (Python, Power BI).
• Certification in relevant areas (e.g., ISA CCST, Siemens Certified Programmer, cybersecurity fundamentals).
• Fluency in English (technical documentation and vendor communication);
  Turkish is mandatory.