Peak Energy's Sacramento Battery Plant Makes Its First…

Peak Energy has begun to move battery manufacturing equipment into its Sacramento factory at Metro Air Park, and it has made its first local hire of what is expected to be 50 employees by February, when it begins production, according to the Sacramento Business Journal. That is what is new since the factory announcement in July. For Metaintro readers, the useful part is the jobs layer below the headline, meaning which roles Peak Energy has posted for the Sacramento plant, what each one pays, where each one starts, what the postings ask for, how the application process works and where local workers can look for training help. Here is what the company's own pages and the public records show.

What Is New at the Metro Air Park Factory?

Two things moved forward. Equipment for battery manufacturing is now going into the Sacramento factory, and the company has made its first local hire for the plant.

Two headcount figures apply. The hire is the first of 250 employees, and 50 employees are expected by February, when production begins. The February figure is an expectation, not a promise.

The postings fill in what the site looks like on the ground. The factory is under active construction and installation through 2026, and the IT role for the site covers onboarding for hourly production ramp cohorts starting Jan 2027. The company also lists its plan for production starting Q1 2027 on the same careers site.

What Was Already Known From the July Announcement?

The site choice itself is not new. Peak Energy announced on July 8, 2026 that it had selected Sacramento for its factory, describing it as the first American factory dedicated to grid-scale sodium-ion energy storage systems. Sacramento County welcomed the company the same day as Peak Energy held a ribbon cutting, and the county called the project the culmination of a nearly two-year recruitment effort led by its Office of Economic Development.

The plant sits at 7180 Badiee Drive in Metro Air Park, which offers more than 1,600 acres of entitled industrial land, and the site is next to the airport. The project represents up to $71 million in capital investment.

The project also has state support. Peak's growth in California is supported by a $10.5 million CalCompetes tax credit, which was awarded in May 2026, and Peak Energy Technology, Inc. is expanding in Sacramento and Burlingame, investing $71 million and creating 348 jobs.

How Many Jobs Is Peak Energy Planning in Sacramento?

Each official figure has its own owner and time window. The company plans 239 new local jobs over the next 18 months, in its July announcement. The county's figure is 249 jobs over the next five years, in the county's July announcement. Across Sacramento and its Burlingame headquarters together, the company is expected to create 348 net new jobs by 2030.

The plant is expected to have 50 employees by February. None of these numbers are open vacancies. They are hiring targets.

For a sense of scale, Peak Energy is a team of about 105 today, growing rapidly as it moves from pilot through commercial scale-up, according to its Automation Technician posting.

Shift work is planned. Peak Energy is planning a two-shift manufacturing operation, and this Automation Technician role covers a single shift and coordinates with the opposing-shift technician.

What Will Workers at the Sacramento Plant Build?

The factory will make grid-scale sodium-ion energy storage systems. The 183,000-square-foot facility will produce up to 4 GWh of battery systems annually, and the systems are expected to enter production and begin shipments in Q1 2027. Operations at the plant are scheduled to begin in the first quarter of 2027.

Each unit is large, and Peak Energy batteries weigh 55 tons each and are rated at 3 megawatts for grid-scale electric storage. The plant will manufacture and store large, 30-foot-long batteries.

The design is passively cooled. The system is engineered to operate for more than 20 years without scheduled maintenance, and the sodium-ion battery systems use abundant domestic materials instead of critical minerals such as lithium, nickel and cobalt.

The company has customer agreements with Jupiter Power, Energy Vault and RWE Americas and more than 6 GWh of customer commitments, plus a strategic partnership with General Motors that includes an investment from GM Ventures.

Which Sacramento Plant Jobs Has Peak Energy Posted?

On Peak Energy's careers site, each posting has its own page, and the ones below are for the Sacramento plant. Some of them start in Burlingame before moving to Sacramento, so check the location line on each page.

Automation Technician. The salary range for this role is $95,000 - $140,000, with actual pay varying by work location, experience and skills, and the job is at the Sacramento facility.
Test Technician, ESS. The hourly rate for this role is $35-50/hr, and the job is based in Burlingame, CA through early 2027 to support onboarding, then moves permanently to Sacramento.
Manufacturing Production Engineer. The salary range for this role is $120,000 - $180,000, the job is in Sacramento, and the posting is open to all experience levels.
Automation Engineer. The salary range for this role is $160,000 - $210,000, and the job is in Sacramento.
Test Engineer, ESS. The salary range for this role is $150,000 to $215,000, it is open to all levels, and the first 3 to 6 months are at the Burlingame, CA headquarters before a permanent move to Sacramento.
Facilities Engineering Lead. The salary range for this role is between $130,000 - $160,000 year, and the job is based in Burlingame, CA, with relocation to Sacramento, CA by Q1 2027.
IT System Administrator (Sacramento). The salary range for this role is $100,000 to $140,000, and the job is full-time and in-person.

The Automation Technician posting lists its benefits as unlimited PTO, comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage, a strong 401(k) plan, and equity opportunities. The Test Technician posting lists flexible time off in place of unlimited PTO.

What Do the Technician Roles Ask For?

The Automation Technician job starts with building the line and then keeping it running. It begins with mounting valves and sensors, running cable, and wiring field devices back to power distribution panels, before shifting into a sustaining role where the technician is the first call when automated equipment goes down and a technical mentor to a second technician.

The role asks for 15+ years of hands-on experience as an Automation, Controls, or Electrical Technician in an industrial or manufacturing environment, spanning both equipment build and installation and sustaining production support. The other requirements on the posting are:

Working knowledge of PLC-based control systems (e.g., Beckhoff TwinCAT, Allen-Bradley, or Siemens), including IO troubleshooting, network diagnostics and basic program monitoring and forcing.
Being comfortable working safely around 24VDC control power and 480VAC three-phase industrial power distribution, and able to read electrical schematics, wiring diagrams and panel prints.
Proven ability to diagnose and repair mechanical, pneumatic, electrical, and controls issues on automated equipment under production time pressure.
Strong documentation habits and demonstrated ability to guide, train, and direct the work of a less experienced technician.
A high school diploma or equivalent, with technical or trade school training or an Associate's degree in Electronics or Industrial Automation as a plus.

Preferred qualifications are a journeyman or master electrician license, experience with Beckhoff TwinCAT, Ignition by Inductive Automation or similar SCADA/HMI/historian platforms, OSHA 10/30 certification and NFPA 70E arc-flash safety training, and experience supporting battery, energy storage, or other 24/7 industrial manufacturing environments.

The Test Technician job is about building and testing prototypes. It covers hands-on assembly and installation of battery modules, power electronics components, control systems, and other hardware components, along with wiring, cabling and soldering. It asks for an Associate degree or technical certification in electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, or a related field, with a bachelor's degree preferred, plus 3+ years of experience as a technician or assembler in a manufacturing or engineering environment, with hands-on experience in prototype assembly and testing.

The same posting also asks for proficiency in reading schematics, technical drawings, and assembly instructions, experience with electrical components, power electronics, batteries and electromechanical systems, and proficiency with hand and power tools for assembly, wiring, soldering and mechanical tasks, among other requirements listed there.

If you are weighing a move into controls work like the Automation Technician job, our explainer on what an automation and controls technician does covers the role in general.

We value skills, potential, and perspective over specific credentials, according to the Test Technician posting.

What Do the Engineering and Building Roles Ask For?

The Manufacturing Production Engineer works on the factory floor. The role covers troubleshooting equipment and process issues in real time, working with production to improve OEE, and it asks for a Bachelor's degree in a technical field (Mechanical, Electrical, Manufacturing, Industrial Engineering, or similar), or equivalent practical experience in a manufacturing/production environment. Junior engineers in this posting will spend more time executing troubleshooting and improvement work under guidance, while senior engineers will be expected to own equipment and process areas end to end, lead root cause investigations, and mentor others.

Several preferred qualifications in that posting carry the phrase or interest in learning, including PLC troubleshooting, robotic work cells, laser welding systems and two-part adhesive, potting and dispense systems.

The Test Engineer will lead and conduct comprehensive testing of functional, thermal, electrical (HV/LV), and mechanical systems across the company's energy storage products. During the first 3 to 6 months, the position will be based at the Burlingame, CA headquarters for onboarding before moving permanently to Sacramento.

The Facilities Engineering Lead will own all things building operations at the battery manufacturing facility, and the role is based in Burlingame, CA, with relocation to Sacramento, CA by Q1 2027. The job covers HVAC and process cooling, electrical distribution (low- and medium-voltage), compressed air, plumbing, and building automation/controls. Its minimum qualifications include:

5+ years of progressive, hands-on experience in industrial facilities maintenance, operations, or engineering within a manufacturing, industrial, or heavy-processing environment.
Prior experience leading, scheduling, or mentoring maintenance/facilities technicians, or clear readiness to step into that role.
Working knowledge of industrial electrical systems (up to 480V distribution, with medium-voltage exposure a plus), HVAC and process cooling, compressed air and plumbing systems.
Being able to respond to after-hours emergencies and support occasional weekend/off-shift work for planned shutdowns or projects.

Other minimum qualifications are listed on the posting. For this role, time served through a trade apprenticeship, military technical training, or progressively responsible maintenance/facilities roles is weighed the same as a formal degree.

The IT System Administrator is the primary IT presence at the Sacramento site from buildout through steady-state production. The role asks for 4+ years of hands-on IT experience, including physical infrastructure work such as cable runs, terminations, network closets and WAP deployment, and for willingness and ability to be onsite at the Sacramento facility 5 days per week, with flexibility for evening or weekend work during buildout, installations or production issues.

What Does Peak Energy Pay Compared With the Announced Average?

The company's headline pay figure for the Sacramento jobs is an average annual wage of more than $90,000, which is an average, not a floor for any single job.

These production facilities are going to pay people, you know, $60,000 to $70,000 a year, Barry Broome of the Greater Sacramento Economic Council said in July, according to the CapRadio report.

Among the postings in this guide, the lowest pay is the Test Technician's $35-50/hr, and the highest top end is the Test Engineer's $150,000 to $215,000. The hourly production workers mentioned in the IT posting are part of ramp cohorts starting Jan 2027, and none of the postings in this guide is a production operator job with a listed rate.

How Does Hiring Work at Peak Energy?

Hiring runs in five steps, from application, initial screening and an online interview to an on-site panel, then references and an offer.

At the on-site panel, finalists visit Peak's site to meet the broader team, tour its facilities and present a short case exercise. Online interviews are with the hiring team and technical leads for structured discussions around their background, capabilities, and approach to problem solving. After final interviews, the company follows up with references and moves quickly toward an offer.

Near matches are welcome on some roles. If your experience for a role like Test Technician does not look perfect on paper, the company still wants to hear from you.

Where Can Sacramento Job Seekers Look for Training Help?

Sacramento County's job center network is Sacramento Works, the Job Center and Training Center System that provides resources and services to employers and job seekers in Sacramento County. Its services, training programs and services to employers are provided by the Workforce Development Department of the Sacramento Employment and Training Agency, the Employment Development Department and over 40 community workforce development partners.

The same agency came up at the July announcement. City Councilmember Eric Guerra said he was there with the Sacramento Employment Training Agency to help fill the more than 230 jobs the facility is expected to create in its first phase.

For coursework, the county's list of colleges and trade schools includes the Los Rios Community College District, the second largest community college district in California.

At the plant announcement, Broome described retraining Blue Diamond workers who got laid off to work in the battery space as one of the things under way. In his view, battery technology can produce a steady, high-wage job flow for people with underserved backgrounds if they're willing to get some basic technical skills.

What This Means for Job Seekers, and What Should You Do Next?

On Peak Energy's careers site, the Sacramento plant postings in this guide are for technicians, engineers and site support roles for building and running the plant, while the hourly production cohorts are tied to a start in Jan 2027. If you are an electrician, a controls technician, a maintenance lead or a manufacturing engineer in the Sacramento area, read the postings in this guide closely.

If you are aiming for a production job instead, look into the county job centers to build the basics. Our guide on how to become a PLC technician walks through one route into controls work, and our list of skills for your manufacturing resume can help you frame past work for a factory hiring team.

Here is what we would do:

Read each posting in full. Start from the Peak Energy careers site and open the full listing before you apply, since requirements differ by role.
Match the exact skills. The Automation Technician posting names Beckhoff TwinCAT, Allen-Bradley or Siemens PLCs and 24VDC control power and 480VAC three-phase industrial power distribution, so put the ones you know near the top of your resume.
Check where the job starts. The Test Technician role is based in Burlingame, CA through early 2027, the Test Engineer spends its first 3 to 6 months in Burlingame, and the Facilities Engineering Lead relocates to Sacramento by Q1 2027.
Prepare a short case. Finalists present a short case exercise at the on-site panel, so be ready to present one.
Use the local job centers. The Sacramento Works job centers serve job seekers in Sacramento County.