Renewable energy jobs at National Laboratory of the Rockies

The laboratory has a rich history of impactful projects, including the development of SEA-Stack, a wave-energy technology screening and design tool that helps companies rapidly evaluate concepts to reduce time and cost in marine energy innovation (source: nlr.gov). It also supports the BOTTLE Consortium's chemical oxidation recycling platform, which aims to enable scalable processing of contaminated, mixed, and multilayer plastic waste, addressing critical challenges in sustainable materials management (source: nlr.gov). The National Laboratory of the Rockies operates the National Wind Technology Center in Colorado, a key facility for advancing wind energy technologies, and maintains a presence in Washington, D.C. to support policy and stakeholder engagement (source: nlr.gov). These projects demonstrate the lab's leadership in renewable energy research and its commitment to accelerating clean energy solutions nationwide.

In December 2025, the Department of Energy officially renamed the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to the National Laboratory of the Rockies, reflecting its evolving mission and regional identity (source: nlr.gov). Throughout 2025 and 2026, the laboratory remained active in advanced energy research, with announcements highlighting progress in marine and wave energy technologies, plastic recycling innovations, and quantum-related materials research (source: nlr.gov). However, the lab also underwent workforce reductions, laying off 134 employees in February 2026 following earlier cuts of at least 114 employees in May 2025, reflecting organizational adjustments amid evolving funding and program priorities (source: cpr.org).

The National Laboratory of the Rockies offers a diverse range of roles spanning research, software and computational science, lab operations, engineering, project management, communications, and administrative support, all within a federally funded R&D environment (source: techjobsforgood.com). Employees benefit from comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage, 403(b) retirement savings plans with employer match, pension eligibility, disability coverage, tuition reimbursement, and professional development opportunities (source: nlr.gov). The campus in Golden, Colorado, provides on-site wellness resources, including a fitness center, cafeteria, coffee shop, meeting spaces, and open-space trails, fostering a collaborative and flexible workplace culture that supports early-career development and work-life balance (source: nlr.gov).