About the role
Molten Industries - Head of Finance Head of Finance Oakland, California General / Full-time / Hybrid apply for this job
About Us Molten Industries ( www.moltenindustries.com ) advances how people live, build, and move through innovative materials, chemicals, and fuels. We are commercializing breakthrough technology to make battery-grade graphite and clean hydrogen using only methane and electricity as inputs. Graphite is a critical mineral that makes up as much as 25% of the mass of lithium-ion batteries used in phones, laptops, and electric vehicles. Molten has developed an entirely new method of graphite production with a fundamentally new supply chain and cost structure. Molten started in 2021 out of a garage at Stanford and is backed by top-tier venture capital firms and a world-class advisory board. We believe in using our talents for the most meaningful work of our lives—mitigating the effects of climate change. We want to do the kind of work that you can write home about. The work that you’ll tell your grandkids about. Engineering feats, growth miracles, and rock-solid, real-world change. At Molten we believe in dreaming big, working with urgency, and getting our hands dirty.
The Role As Molten transitions from demonstration to full-scale commercialization and project execution, we are looking for a powerhouse Head of Finance to build our financial engine from the ground up. This is not a "high-level strategy only" CFO role; we need a builder who is as comfortable architecting a complex project finance model in Excel as they are negotiating debt terms or managing day-ahead energy contracts. You are a scrappy self-starter with a bias to action. You will be the primary architect of our financial future, responsible for ensuring we have the capital, controls, and rigorous modeling necessary to build massive physical infrastructure. You will have our key numbers memorized and will be the financial "source of truth" for the executive team, investors, and external partners. What you will do Financial Modeling & Strategy: Build and maintain detailed cost models, three-statement financial projections, and proforma budgets to guide our scaling and manufacturing plant construction. Capital Raising: Support the executive team in securing a diverse capital stack, including venture capital, equipment financing, project financing, debt, and government grants. Commodity & Energy Management: Manage day-ahead electricity and natural gas purchasing and contracts; develop and execute hedging strategies to manage price volatility. Project & CAPEX Oversight: Budget for heavy equipment procurement and manage contractor spending for our manufacturing facilities; manage collateral exposure and plan sufficient capital reserves. Controller & Compliance: Manage external accountants and tax professionals; oversee government tax credits (e.g., 45V, 45X) and ensure all regulatory financial filings are airtight. Treasury & Risk: Manage cash flow, liquidity, and banking relationships, including securing letters of credit for facility leases and project guarantees. What you will bring Deep Industry Experience: 5+ years of finance experience working with "heavy" industries such as oil and gas, mining, chemical production, or renewables. Technical Mastery: Expert-level financial modeling skills; you should be able to build complex project finance and operational models from scratch without templates. Commodity Knowledge: Proven experience in commodities purchasing, hedging, and managing the associated collateral and risk exposure. Fundraising Literacy: Direct experience with various financing vehicles, specifically project finance and debt instruments used in capital-intensive businesses. Operational Grit: Experience managing the "nuts and bolts" of finance, from acting as a controller to overseeing external audits and tax strategy. Education: Bachelor’s degree in Finance, Economics, Engineering, or a related quantitative field; MBA or CFA is a plus but not required if you have the "dirt under your fingernails" experience we need.