Lead Cost Estimator

Title:
Lead Cost Estimator

Location:
Toronto, ON – Hybrid (3+ days/week in office)

Job Type: Full-Time

Travel Requirement:
Approximately 10%

Position Type:
Net New

Join the Future of Reliable Energy!

Are you ready to shape the future grid? Hydrostor, a leading energy storage, technology and infrastructure company dedicated to developing utility‑scale, long‑duration energy storage solutions, is seeking a Lead Cost Estimator to join our team in Toronto, ON. We’re supporting the development of a more resilient electricity grid and invite you to be at the forefront of this work!

Hydrostor is seeking a Lead Cost Estimator to join our Technology team. In this senior individual contributor role, you’ll build and scale an integrated estimating capability spanning product development, technology evolution, and project execution.

Reporting to the VP, Project Engineering, you will partner across Engineering, Product, Strategic Sourcing, and Early Development to deliver clear, decision‑grade capital cost estimates. You’ll combine standardized product costs with site‑specific scope, execution strategies, and regional dynamics to guide critical business decisions.

You’ll play a key role in early‑stage project development, ensuring estimates inform investment decisions and shape supply chain strategy. This includes translating current, future, and emerging (R&D and new site) technologies into cost insights that drive product evolution and deployment.

Your work will directly support project development and execution readiness across North America and Australia—ensuring our innovations translate into lasting cost competitiveness and scalable supply chain outcomes.

Build & Evolve Product‑Based Costing Frameworks

• Develop and maintain Hydrostor’s baseline product cost model, including direct CAPEX, indirect costs, EPC/M services, escalation, and risk and contingency
• Define clear boundaries between standard product scope and site‑specific scope, including assumptions, exclusions, and interfaces
• Establish estimating structures aligned with AACE Guidelines and general project accounting and auditing standards, including application of WBS, CBS and cost account frameworks for consistent reporting and benchmarking
• Create standardized dashboards and executive reports to support company‑wide visibility and senior leadership decision‑making
• Partner with Engineering, Product, and Project teams to ensure alignment with approved configuration baselines
• Ensure estimates are structured to inform downstream project engineering, execution planning, and supply chain strategies

Translate Technology Advancement into Cost Advantage

• Quantify cost impacts from technology maturity, product standardization, modularization, and sourcing strategies
• Build and maintain parametric estimating models, cost curves, unit rates, and historical cost databases
• Integrate lessons learned and actual project data into estimating tools and future cost models
• Collaborate with Engineering and Strategic Sourcing to ensure cost insights influence product design and supplier strategies
• Develop forward‑looking cost estimates for current, near‑term, and future technology iterations, including hypothetical R&D pathways and new site applications

Own End‑to‑End Project Estimating

• Develop estimates across all project stages, from conceptual and screening through budget and detailed EPC‑level estimates
• Perform quantity takeoffs, equipment and material pricing, labour productivity analysis, and indirect cost development
• Evaluate and incorporate supplier and subcontractor quotations into estimates
• Prepare comprehensive Basis of Estimate (BoE) documentation capturing scope, assumptions, methodology, and risk approach
• Support handoff from estimating to execution budgets with clear articulation of assumptions and exclusions
• Provide estimating support to project engineering and early‑stage development activities, ensuring cost alignment with project scope and maturity

Incorporate Global Market & Execution Factors

• Apply country and regional adjustment factors to baseline estimates, including labour rates, logistics, procurement strategies, and site conditions…