ABOUT AVANTUS
Avantus develops, owns and operates utility-scale clean energy projects across California and the Desert Southwest. Our development pipeline of solar with integrated storage will generate enough dispatchable power to serve more than 10 million Americans, day and night. Backed by strategic investment from KKR and EIG, and building on more than a decade of industry leadership, Avantus is growing its position as an independent power producer, delivering affordable, reliable clean energy solutions to meet America’s growing energy demand.
ABOUT THE POSITION
The Sr. Director or Vice President, Digital Infrastructure leads Avantus' development of powered land and data center-oriented energy infrastructure. Energy availability, not capital, is now the binding constraint on data center growth, and “powered land” - entitled sites with a secured path to power - commands a structural premium. Avantus already controls large contiguous desert-southwest sites, generation interconnection queue positions, and utility relationships in exactly the geographies where hyperscalers are power- and land-constrained. This role stands up and leads Avantus' data center development unit, building a repeatable pipeline of powered land, co-development, and energy infrastructure opportunities, and translating the company's existing land and interconnection assets as well as developing new projects into a new, durable line of business. This role reports directly to the Chief Development Officer.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS AND RESPONSIBILITIES
- Build and lead Avantus' data center development function, converting the company's land and interconnection queue positions while developing new sites into a repeatable pipeline of powered land, co-development, and energy infrastructure opportunities.
- Lead a small and nimble team responsible for end-to-end management of data center development projects, including site selection, design, permitting, and utility coordination; assess site feasibility based on Avantus’s generation resources, power availability, connectivity, environmental considerations, and regulatory requirements; and negotiate energy supply agreements including pricing, contract terms, and service levels to secure reliable, cost-effective power for data center operations.
- Develop and execute integrated energy strategies for powered land, spanning greenfield monetization, co-development partnerships with data center operators, and selective self-development of energized campuses.
- Source and structure opportunities across the full range of deal types - land monetization, JV-style co-development, project acquisitions, and M&A-adjacent structures - with developers, landowners, and infrastructure partners.
- Coordinate with internal interconnection and transmission teams on load service requests, electrical service agreements, and transmission capacity with utilities and ISO/RTO operators.
- Coordinate with internal real estate team to identify sites to lease or purchase to support facilities
- Coordinate with internal environmental permitting team to manage county and state permitting processes
- Partner directly with data center customers to deliver energy solutions through PPAs and on-site, off-site, or behind-the-meter technologies.
- Evaluate prospective opportunities in partnership with internal power, engineering, development, finance, and commercial leadership, and help determine which should be funded, acquired, partnered, developed internally, or deprioritized.
- Build and manage strategic relationships with utilities, hyperscalers, and infrastructure partners to structure innovative, repeatable energy solutions.
- Represent Avantus with credibility and commercial judgment in confidential, market-facing conversations with developers, landowners, and data center operators.
- Bring a data center and digital infrastructure lens to a team with deep power and renewable energy development experience, operating with the strategic judgment and hands-on execution a growth-stage platform requires.
REQUIRED SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS
- 12+ years of experience in energy management, utility-scale renewable development, or data center power infrastructure, including senior business development or project origination experience in digital infrastructure or adjacent power markets.
- Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Engineering, or Construction Management; Master’s degree/MBA preferred.
- Strong technical understanding of transmission infrastructure, grid interconnection processes, , and solar PV/BESS technologies, together with meaningful understanding of the data center ecosystem - how power, land, development readiness, and infrastructure constraints shape project viability.
- Familiarity with FERC, NERC, and ISO/RTO market structures (e.g., ERCOT, WECC), and experience sourcing opportunities in markets where power availability and data center demand are creating new infrastructure needs.
- Demonstrated ability to source opportunities directly through relationship-building, market outreach, and creative deal identification, with experience evaluating early-stage partnerships, JVs, or M&A-adjacent structures.
- 5+ years of team leadership experience, with demonstrated success building a new function or line of business in a fast-paced, growth-stage environment.
- Entrepreneurial mindset, high ownership, and comfort operating with ambiguity; strong communication skills and the maturity to represent a confidential growth platform externally.
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