Posting Title

Postdoctoral Researcher - Industrial and Fuel Supply Optimization Modeling/Analysis

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Location

CO - Golden

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Position Type

Postdoc (Fixed Term)

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Hours Per Week

40

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Working at NLR

NLR is located at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Golden, Colorado is the nation's primary laboratory for energy systems research and development.

Join the National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR), where world-class scientists, engineers, and experts are accelerating energy innovation through breakthrough research and systems integration. From our mission to our collaborative culture, NLR stands out in the research community for its commitment to an affordable and secure energy future. Spanning foundational science to applied systems engineering and analysis, we focus on solving complex challenges to deliver advanced, secure, reliable, and cost-effective energy solutions. Our work helps strengthen U.S. industries, support job creation, and promote national economic growth.

At NLR, you'll find a mission-driven environment supported by state-of-the-art facilities, multidisciplinary research teams, and strong collaborations with industry, academia, and other national laboratories. We offer robust professional development opportunities, and a competitive benefits package designed to support your career and well-being.

Job Description

The Integrated Modeling and Economic Analysis Group within the National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR) is hiring a postdoctoral researcher to join a highly interdisciplinary and collaborative team of researchers developing and applying models to evaluate alternative scenarios of industrial and fuel systems evolution.

Job Duties and Responsibilities:

The Integrated Modeling and Economic Analysis Group develops and applies energy and economic models to evaluate and inform the evolution of industrial and fuel systems and the potential implications for the economy, environment, and energy use. We are looking forward to welcoming a new postdoctoral researcher to our team to contribute to a growing body of research evaluating cross-sectoral interactions under alternative scenarios of energy system evolution.

Working with senior researchers, the successful candidate will develop and apply the Fuels and Industry Integrated Optimization (FINITO) model—a model simulating the evolution of the US industrial and fuel supply sectors—to a range of research topics, including:

• evaluation of alternative policies or actions to increase electricity, fuels, and industrial affordability and US competitiveness in international markets, and
• evaluation of research and development (R&D) driven improvements in the cost and performance of energy and industrial technologies on the evolution of the industrial system.

In particular, the researcher will contribute to (or lead aspects of) all components of research, including project ideation and proposal development, methods development and implementation, and analysis and communications of results. Communications products to be developed by the researcher will include presentations to deliver at workshops/conferences as well as development of technical articles for submission to peer-reviewed journals.

In addition to having expertise and substantial experience in energy and industrial system modeling and analysis, the ideal candidate will have a high level of enthusiasm to expand their knowledge of the energy and industrial systems, learn new skills, and apply such knowledge and skills to help identify how the US can transition to an affordable, competitive, and sustainable industrial system, what the implications are for society, and how policy can be designed to help shape those outcomes. We welcome applicants with PhDs from any field, but the applicant must have experience developing and applying optimization models and experience in analysis of the energy and industrial systems.

General job duties include:                                                                                                                                               

• Conducting objective research that generates independent, high quality, and reproducible results,
• Research, acquisition, and analysis of large data sets,
• Development of new data architectures to generically and flexibly describe infrastructure systems,
• Development and implementation of new advanced methods for modeling of energy and/or industrial system evolution,
• Executing scenarios and visualizing, analyzing, and interpreting results for reporting,
• Assisting senior researchers in the design, implementation, and reporting of the research project,
• Leading or contributing to technical reports, journal articles and presentations,
• Communicating effectively and succinctly both in written products and in speaking roles, 

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Basic Qualifications

Must be a recent PhD graduate within the last three years.

* Must meet educational requirements prior to employment start date.

Additional Required Qualifications

• Demonstrated experience developing and applying optimization models (ideally in energy and/or industrial system applications) and experience with leading modeling coding environments, e.g., GAMS, MPSGE, Julia
• Demonstrated experience in code-based data management and analysis using leading coding environments: e.g. R, Python
• Significant working knowledge of all subsectors of the US energy system and associated markets, policies, and regulations
• Working knowledge of literature in scenarios for alternative energy futures
• Demonstrated experience presenting research findings to broad—technical and non-technical—audiences
• Exceptional teaming and organizational skills
• Exceptional writing skills and a demonstrated record of publication in the technical/peer-reviewed literature

Preferred Qualifications

• PhD in economics (with a focus on energy/environment), policy, engineering or other related field

• Experience with IO models and/or computable general equilibrium modeling

• Experience working with key economic data sources, such as IMPLAN, OECD, BEA

• Experience in public policy—either direct experience or in analysis of policy design or impacts

• Prior work experience in the energy, fuels, or industrial sector, at state- or federal agencies, or research institutions focused on energy, fuels, and/or industry

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Job Application Submission Window

The anticipated closing window for application submission is up to 30 days and may be extended as needed.

Annual Salary Range (based on full-time 40 hours per week)

Job Profile: Postdoctoral Researcher / Annual Salary Range: $76,600 - $126,400

NLR takes into consideration a candidate’s education, training, and experience, expected quality and quantity of work, required travel (if any), external market and internal value, including seniority and merit systems, and internal pay alignment when determining the salary level for potential new employees. In compliance with the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act, a potential new employee’s salary history will not be used in compensation decisions.

Benefits Summary

Benefits include medical, dental, and vision insurance; short-term disability insurance*; pension benefits*; 403(b) Employee Savings Plan with employer match*; life and accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) insurance; personal time off (PTO) and sick leave; and paid holidays. NLR employees may be eligible for, but are not guaranteed, performance-, merit-, and achievement- based awards that include a monetary component. Some positions may be eligible for relocation expense reimbursement.

* Based on eligibility rules

Badging Requirement

NLR is subject to Department of Energy (DOE) access restrictions. All employees must also be able to obtain and maintain a federal Personal Identity Verification (PIV) card as required by Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12), which includes a favorable background investigation.

Drug Free Workplace

NLR is committed to maintaining a drug-free workplace in accordance with the federal Drug-Free Workplace Act and complies with federal laws prohibiting the possession and use of illegal drugs. Under federal law, marijuana remains an illegal drug.

If you are offered employment at NLR, you must pass a pre-employment drug test prior to commencing employment. Unless prohibited by state or local law, the pre-employment drug test will include marijuana. If you test positive on the pre-employment drug test, your offer of employment may be withdrawn.

Submission Guidelines

Please note that in order to be considered an applicant for any position at NLR you must submit an application form for each position for which you believe you are qualified. Applications are not kept on file for future positions. Please include a cover letter and resume with each position application.

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Equal Opportunity Employer

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard basis of age (40 and over), color, disability, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, domestic partner status, military or veteran status, national origin/ancestry, race, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding), sexual orientation, and any other applicable status protected by federal, state, or local laws.

Reasonable Accommodations

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