Associate: Construction Environmental Management (Fixed Term Contract)

About the Company

Since its establishment in 2008, Mulilo has grown into one of South Africa’s leading Independent Power Producers (IPP). Mulilo is majority owned by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP), with Norfund holding an additional investment through the Norwegian Climate Investment Fund.

Mulilo develops, constructs and operates utility scale wind, solar PV and battery energy storage projects across South Africa. The company currently operates 450 MW of wind and solar capacity, with a further 765 MW under construction. A portfolio exceeding 2 GW is advancing toward financial close, while the long-term development pipeline exceeds 30 GW.

Mulilo has concluded power purchase agreements under the South African government’s Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP), as well as private offtake agreements with several large corporate energy users.

Mulilo places significant emphasis on its people and recognises that successful infrastructure delivery depends on capable and committed teams. The company prides itself on providing a world-class working environment, with a clear focus on career progression and personal growth. Grounded in its values, Mulilo fosters a culture of accountability, collaboration and purpose, while remaining committed to its environmental, social and governance responsibilities.

About this role

• As the Associate: Construction Environmental Management, you will work primarily in the Project Execution phase (i.e. construction phase) of various renewable energy and Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) projects, with some limited involvement in the late Project Development phase.
• You will report directly to the Manager: Construction Environmental Management, and indirectly to the Director: Project Execution and the Manager: Environmental Social Governance (ESG) & Risk.
• You will be responsible for environmental permitting and environmental compliance across allocated projects.
• You will be based at Head Office and will be required to travel regularly (approximately monthly for up to five days in duration) to your allocated project sites.
• While the role is primarily focused on environmental permitting and compliance as well as ECO management, the position also supports the implementation of Mulilo’s ESG requirements during the construction phase, including coordination with the ESG and Safety functions to ensure alignment with Mulilo’s ESG standards applicable to construction activities.

Duties and responsibilities 

Late Project Development

• Assist the Financial Close (FC) team with relevant Environmental permitting items.
• With assistance from the Project Developer, appoint the Environmental Control Officer (ECO) for allocated Projects.
• Ensure compliance with relevant pre-construction and planning requirements of the relevant Environmental Management Programmes (EMPRs).

Project Execution (Construction)

• Assist the Manager: Construction Environmental Management to ensure overall environmental compliance of all Mulilo Projects in construction.
• Manage and oversee compliance of your allocated projects.
• Review ECO reports and implement recommended corrective or compliance actions.
• Ensure final ECO reports (and/or other required Environmental Audit reports) are timeously submitted to the relevant authorities.
• Support the implementation of Mulilo’s ESG requirements during construction, including coordination on internal ESG site audits and the identification, escalation, and management of construction-phase environmental and social risks, in coordination with the Project Manager and ESG & Risk Manager.
• Coordinate with the ESG & Risk Manager and Project team on lender technical advisor (LTA) audits and support the timely close-out of construction-related Environmental and Social Action Plan (ESAP) actions.
• Act as the dEO (for all your allocated Projects) indirectly reporting to the Project Manager (on-site):
• Ensure implementation of the EMPr, environmental monitoring and reporting.
• providing environmental input to the Project Manager and Contractor’s Manager.
• liaising with contractors and the landowners.
• Be fully conversant with the EMPr;
• Be familiar with the recommendations and mitigation measures of all applicable EMPRs.
• Ensure that all stipulations within the EMPRs are communicated and adhered to by the Employees, Contractor(s) and its sub-contractor(s).
• Confine the development site to the demarcated area.
• Conduct environmental internal audits of the Contractor and Contractor’s Environmental Officer (cEO) with regards to EMPr and EA compliance.
• Assist the contractors in addressing environmental challenges on site.
• Assist in incident management: Reporting environmental incidents to Mulilo and ECO and ensuring that corrective action is taken, and lessons learnt shared.
• Assist the contractor in investigating environmental incidents and compile investigation reports.
• Follow-up on pre-warnings, defects, non-conformance reports.
• Measure and communicate environmental performance to the Contractor.
• Conduct environmental awareness training on site together with ECO and cEO.
• Ensure that the necessary legal permits and / or licenses are in place and up to date.

Required skills and education background.

• Tertiary Degree in relevant field (e.g. science, engineering, environmental, project management, project development).
• Experience and knowledge of the South African renewable energy industry (particularly large-scale wind and solar).
• Project development or construction, or environmental management experience within the renewable energy sector or in other industries facing similar challenges, such as infrastructure and construction.
• Possession of a valid, South Africa Code 08 driver’s license.
• Knowledge of Environmental Management and/or Environmental Law.
• Strong administrative skills and ability to solve problems creatively.
• Able to work independently with limited management and oversight.

Desirable and/or Preferred skills and education background

• Minimum 4-6 years of relevant work experience.
• Honors (or equivalent) / Masters Degree in related field.
• Construction site experience (1-2 years).
• Internal audit training or audit experience.
• Training and/or experience in applying ESG requirements within construction or infrastructure project environments.
• Health and Safety (H&S) training and/or experience.

Desirable attributes

The ideal candidate would have a passion for the Renewable Energy sector and personality traits would include a high level of diligence, determination, resilience, and agility.

Mulilo is an employer of choice and is offering an extremely competitive total remuneration package for this position.

Additional Information

Might be required to work overtime according to operational needs.