Company Overview

Lydian is developing the lowest cost sustainable fuels from waste CO2, water, and renewable electricity to decarbonize the aviation industry. Our breakthrough technology replaces oil and gas refining with fully electrified, modular, and flexible reactor systems that produce fuel with 95% lower emissions than traditional jet fuel.

Since our founding in 2021, Lydian has achieved key milestones in record time, including the production of our first liquid fuel from our pilot system. Lydian is backed by the world's top energy transition investors including Congruent Ventures, Galvanize Climate Solutions, Union Square Ventures, Voyager Ventures, Grok Ventures, and more. We have also earned support from the US Department of Energy, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), and have been recognized by Forbes 30u30 and by Silicon Valley Bank's 50 by 2050 List which recognizes the top fifty energy transition companies based on potential impact and scale.

Position overview

Lydian is looking for a Vice President of Engineering to lead the development, integration, and execution of our commercial-scale systems — from pilot through FOAK and into scaled deployment. This role owns the translation of our core technology into real, deployable hardware. You will drive stage-gate engineering execution, lead first-of-a-kind (FOAK) system development/deployment, and define how we design and build plants that are modularly designed, radically lower cost, and faster to deploy.

A core part of this role is breaking from traditional EPC-led execution models — instead building internally-driven engineering, modular design strategies, and tightly controlled vendor scopes that enable speed, cost discipline, and iteration. You should be equally comfortable reviewing a P&ID, challenging a control philosophy, pressure-testing a capital estimate, aligning with project managers on execution strategy, and stepping into detailed IC work when needed.

This role is fully onsite in Boston.

Responsibilities

Engineering Execution & FOAK Project Delivery

• Own end-to-end engineering execution across FEL stages for pilot, demo, and commercial systems, including PFDs, P&IDs, heat & material balances, and design reviews

• Lead engineering development for FOAK capital projects and beyond from early design through commissioning

• Partner closely with project/program managers to integrate scope, schedule, cost, and risk into all engineering decisions and execution plans

Cost, Execution Strategy & Modularization

• Own cost as a first-class engineering constraint, driving design-to-cost decisions and continuous cost-down across all systems

• Define and implement execution strategies that avoid default EPC models in favor of modular, internally-controlled approaches

• Decompose systems into tightly managed vendor scopes while maintaining internal ownership of integration and interfaces

Process, Controls & Electrified Systems

• Lead/manage process and controls engineering across all system scales, defining architectures that are robust, operable, and scalable

• Design for fully electrified operation, including grid interaction, dynamic operation, and flexible load management

• Ensure systems are designed for real operating conditions, including startup/shutdown behavior, transients, and long-term reliability

Equipment, Fabrication & Deployment

• Own equipment specification, vendor selection, and procurement strategy across major systems

• Drive modular design and design-for-manufacturing to minimize field work, reduce installation cost, and accelerate deployment

• Lead engineering through fabrication, construction, and commissioning, ensuring alignment with permitting, constructability, and regulatory requirements

Qualifications

• BS or MS in Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Systems Engineering, or similar

• 15+ years of experience leading engineering for complex process systems, with direct ownership from early design through construction, commissioning, and operations

• Proven track record delivering FOAK or early commercial capital projects, including navigating technical uncertainty and execution risk

• Deep expertise in process engineering, with working fluency across controls/automation, mechanical systems, and full plant integration

• Familiarity with fuel upgrading technologies (e.g., hydrocracking, isomerization, naphtha upgrading) or closely related refining processes

• Strong ability to operate at both system-level architecture and detailed technical execution, including hands-on design work where needed

• Experience operating outside of traditional EPC models, with a bias toward modular, internally-driven execution and tight scope control is strongly preferred

• Experience designing and deploying electrified process systems, including integration with the electrical grid and dynamic/variable operation is strongly preferred

Company Culture and Benefits

• Challenging, collaborative, and meaningful work and an important voice in company development

• Competitive salary commensurate with experience

• Meaningful equity compensation