Discover a Career as a
Power Plant Technician
Discover your career path in the energy industry.
Learn where your interests will take you. Explore the meaningful work in which you can immerse yourself. Set your sites on what you can learn and the increasing responsibilities that can be yours. See how you will be challenged and what will you accomplish.
*Compensation averages should be used as a guide. There are numerous factors that impact actual compensation. These estimates do not include over-time, which can be a sizeable addition to base pay. Years of service and training recommendations should also be used as a guide. Company requirements vary.
Note: Some energy companies may require pre-employment testing. Please check the job requirements. These may include an EEI Pre-Employment Test or a Physical Abilities Test.
Become a Power Plant Technician
Starting off as an Entry-Level Technician:
What will you do?
- Provide assistance to plant operators by reading gauges and checking equipment
- Make work area safe
What knowledge / skills / abilities will you need?
- Ability to work within a team
- Be able to lift 75 lbs
- Be able to listen and follow directions
- Be comfortable with heights
- Be able to work in noisy conditions
- Math skills including algebra, trigonometry, and geometry
- Come to work on time and prepared
Training Components:
What will you do?
- Apply Alternating Current/Direct Current concepts
to daily work - Check valves, pumps, engines/turbines
- Understand plant processes and systems (water,
electric, etc.) - Check programmable logic controls
What knowledge / skills / abilities will you need?
- Physical ability to climb stairs and ladders, operate stiff valves manually, lift weights, control pneumatic or hydraulic wrenches
- Apply knowledge obtained during training in the work environment
- Understanding of various types of test equipment including multi-meters
- Work with various types of tools
- Perform soldering
Senior Technician:
What will you do?
- Diagnose and solve problems
- Manage multiple tasks at one time
- Apply basic mechanical principles (e.g., gear trains, centrifugal force, heat flow)
- Apply knowledge of systems and how they function
- Foresee system implications of malfunctions
- Anticipate required future conditions in numerous interacting systems
What knowledge / skills / abilities will you need?
- Use information to diagnose and solve problems
- Be able to manage multiple tasks at one time
- Ability to understand basic mechanical principles (e.g., gear trains, centrifugal force, heat flow)
- Ability to comprehend entire systems and how they function
- Ability to foresee system implications of malfunctions or of own actions
- Ability to anticipate required future conditions in numerous interacting systems
Generation Supervisor:
What will you do?
- Determine schedules and work activities of team members
- Review team member performance and provide feedback
- Inspect records and log book entries to determine plant efficiency
- Prepare and manage budgets
- Communicate and report to management
- Deal with potentially stressful situations
What knowledge / skills / abilities will you need?
- People management
- Communications skills
- Financial management
- Computer skills for report preparation
- Assign priority or sequence to the steps for completing a job
- Coordinate several competing activities for efficient use of time and material
- Adapt work procedures or priorities in response to changing or unforeseen requirements or conditions
