Project Engineer Offgrid / Minigrid and BESS Full Time

Type of contract: Full Time.

Place of work: Cape Town (This role may require international travel across the continent.)

Salary package: R450-R650,000 with additional benefits including performance based annual bonus and eligible for Employee Share Option Plan.

Additional Languages: Ability to speak French and/or Portuguese is considered highly beneficial.

Project Engineer Offgrid Minigrid and BESS. We are seeking an experienced candidate within the containerised solar PV and battery energy storage systems (BESS) sector with operational experience designing, commissioning, servicing turnkey solar PV generation systems across sub-Saharan Africa.

The company tailors containerised systems that are perfectly suited for emerging markets and the needs of clean, turnkey and distributed renewable energy (DRE). The production system and assembly facility are geared for small-scale, once-off and bespoke projects as well as large-scale rollouts of mini-grids alike.

Headquartered in Cape Town, the team focuses on business development across sub-Saharan Africa with current business activities in numerous Sub-Saharan countries. With growing activities, a good presence on the African continent, an expanding network of partners and the implementation of new projects, the company is set to grow exponentially over the next few years with a strong focus on BESS opportunities.

Job Description:

This is an exciting opportunity to work in energy access, and support the company growth and strategic market positioning as a key systems’ integrator across the continent for both the off-grid/mini-grid and BESS product range.

The preferred candidate will have the following responsibilities:

• Oversee the technical scope during the manufacturing process (i.e. mechanical design, SLDs, electrical installation, factory acceptance tests (FAT), and support client during the commissioning phase (SAT) successfully)
• Draft technical scope of sub-contractors where required, and sign-off on work across the project life cycle (i.e. from signature of the contract and review of technical specs, issuing of manufacturing design.
• Oversee technical scope of sub-contractors during manufacturing, installation and commissioning i.e. mechanical installation, electrical installation and sign off after completion.
• Together with the junior electrical engineer, create and review electrical schematics, cable calculations, determine quantities, select best equipment, and specify all components (BoM) to provide the optimal configuration for Battery-Storage and Solar systems.
• Oversee required FAT (i.e. planning, documents such as-built drawings, etc.) and final checks before packing/shipping.
• Create installation manuals for the client.
• Support client remotely during commissioning (and where required travel to site across sub-Saharan Africa).Liaise with OEMs and distributors in the event of a warranty claim and ensure the client is well supported until issue/claim is successfully resolved.
• Oversee junior project engineer and monitoring of all existing sites, liaising with clients where there are issues and any interventions required (e.g. re-commissioning, re-setting, pushing software updates, connectivity, etc) and successfully keep abreast and communicate with clients.
• Interface with internal stakeholders for successful project delivery (project manager, technical sales & product development team, procurement, etc.) and external stakeholders to ensure consistent communication.
• Keep up to date and maintain with company’s internal project management processes (Asana).Quality control & assessment of equipment delivered to client site (i.e. drilling holes in mounting structures, comms cables wiring, electrical installation and COC, etc.)
• Offer after sale services in terms of operation, maintenance and technical support for new and existing client portfolio.
• Technical support for tender preparation with the senior technical sales & product development engineer.
• Where required undertake system modelling (HOMER, PVsyst, internal tools)Keep up to date with latest technology development i.e. inverters, batteries, remote monitoring systems and brands, and ensure a combination of self-training and structured training via existing distributors.

Requirements:

• Electrical Engineering degree (or similar)Minimum 2-3 years’ experience in battery-storage and/or solar systems engineering design and installation.
• Strong knowledge of battery-storage and solar PV power systems.
• Ability to work within a local and international design team.
• Masters Degree in an Engineering-related field is highly advantageous.
• Experience in renewable project design and optimization in the African market.
• Results and solution-driven.
• Well-organized and punctilious approach to work especially during highly time pressured project phases.
• Notable communication and negotiation skills.
• Ability to manage multiple projects and teams.
• Scripting skills for automation.
• Experience in installation, operation and maintenance of solar systems, successfully overseeing factory acceptance and site acceptance testing.
• Experience in stand-alone and hybrid energy storage systems and technology.
• CAD software – use computer-aided design (CAD) software on a daily basis.
• Analytically inclined self-motivated and driven.
• Excellent relationship-building skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• MS Office proficient.
• Ability to speak French and/or Portuguese would be highly beneficial.
• Project management concepts – from scheduling to meeting deadlines, electrical design engineers should be able to adhere to project management guidelines and processes.
• Electrical codes – knowledge of electrical codes is important in the design and manufacture of electrical system.
• Data analytics with relation to battery system testing and operation.

Application Process:

Please send your Resume & Dedicated Motivational letter quoting the vacancy reference no: MJ1792 to macey.johnson@shawenergyltd.com