About Earthrise

Earthrise Energy seeks to power our world more responsibly, sustainably, and equitably than ever before. An independent power producer, Earthrise takes a holistic approach to the energy transition.  We leverage the existing transmission infrastructure of a portfolio of legacy fossil fuel generation plants to accelerate the deployment of renewable technologies. We acquire, develop, and operate power generation facilities that provide reliable electricity, support the decarbonizing grid, and meet the evolving needs of our customers and communities.

Land is the critical path to realizing successful utility-scale solar plants adjacent to our legacy gas power plants (hubs). Earthrise’s differentiated strategy requires a surgical, thorough campaign that leaves no stone unturned, and extensive easement negotiations to tie parcels together. The Director of Land Acquisition is responsible for running the land campaigns across all of Earthrise’s current and future hubs. This role will report to the Vice President, Development and collaborate closely with Earthrise’s project developers, and Corporate Development team. This role will select and manage all third-party land agents, oversee a small internal team, and be supported by internal and outside real estate counsel. The ideal candidate has at least 8 years’ experience in land acquisition and right-of-way campaigns for large-scale energy projects in the United States.

Responsibilities

• Oversee land acquisition campaigns across all of Earthrise’s current hubs and as well as strategic, targeted efforts in other high-value locations, ensuring a high velocity of quality of sites and rights of way to reach a critical mass of acres in the shortest timeline possible
• Manage external land agents/land firms: negotiate contracts, educate land agents, review progress on weekly calls and define the workflow to ensure fluid execution
• Lead a small internal team that supports land acquisition across all hubs, coordinating closely with project developers to ensure high quality of sites and alignment with project schedules
• Develop plan for approaching key landowners that control point of interconnection and/or large swaths of land

Qualifications & Skills

• Willingness to travel to Earthrise’s hubs in Illinois for landowner meetings up to 50% of the time
• 8 years of experience in land acquisition for large-scale energy projects, with at least 5 years in a management or leadership capacity; renewable energy experience preferred
• Direct experience with land leases and rights of way/easements via variety of contract structures
• People management experience, especially strong personalities
• Strong interpersonal communication skills and ability to communicate with people from diverse backgrounds
• Always-selling mentality, persistent, never takes no for an answer
• Ability to effortlessly switch between player and coach
• Highly motivated with a strong sense of urgency