SA - Senior EAG Technician

Department: Energy Analysis Group – African Platform

Job Location: Cape Town

Reporting to: Met Station Manager

Travel Required: Frequent local travel – duration max. 5 days/trip.

Company Overview:

Mainstream Renewable Power is the leading independent developer of utility-scale wind and solar power plants. The company is focused on delivering a high-quality portfolio of more than 7 GWs of wind and solar assets across high-growth markets in Europe, the Americas, Africa and Asia.

In South Africa, Mainstream has been awarded a total of 848 MWs of wind and solar projects under the Government’s renewable energy procurement programme since the first round in 2011, making it the country’s most successful independent renewable energy developer.  The company most recently finished constructing 250 MWs of wind farm projects, which achieved commercial operation during 2020. More recently, the company was awarded 1.27 GWs of wind and solar projects under the recent Round 5 of REIPPPP, which are targeted to achieve financial close within the next 6 months.

In Chile, Mainstream owns 1.3 GWs of fully contracted wind and solar projects in operation, in construction or at late-stage development, due to its unprecedented success in government auctions. In Asia, the company is developing large-scale projects in Vietnam and the Philippines.

Mainstream has raised more than €3.0bn in project finance to date and employs over 450 staff across 13 countries.

This is an exciting time for Mainstream as we plan to integrate with Aker Horizons, our new equity partner, and strive towards our ambitious targets of securing 5.5 GW of renewable assets to FC and be IPO ready by 2023. To date Mainstream employs over 350 staff across four continents.

For more information, please visit https://www.mainstreamrp.com/

Summary of Role:

We are currently recruiting for a senior technician to support Mainstream’s solar and wind energy development in South Africa. The successful candidate will be part of the global Energy Analysis Group (EAG).  This position requires a highly organized candidate with excellent technical and management skills.

Main responsibilities will include, but not limited to:

• Follow-up on weekly reported data quality results and devise corrective plans.
• Equipping new solar station installations with instrumentation.
• Perform new lidar installations and relocations.
• Debugging non-operational installations/sensors and report to Manager.
• Assist with maintenance planning, arranging installation repairs.

What You Will Do?

• Assisting with the management of installation, maintenance and decommissioning of temporary meteorological masts, lidar units, and solar measurement stations.
• Assisting with the management of SHEQ requirements for these activities in conjunction with Mainstream’s SHEQ.
• Ensure that systems are installed and operating as per specification. (Technical due diligent).
• Maintain up to date documentation on all maintenance activities and ensuring compliance with Mainstream technical and SHEQ standards.
• New Lidar installation and relocations to be performed.
• Equipping and maintaining solar station installations (scheduled/unscheduled)
• Perform on site met. mast maintenance and repairs, which may range from sensor swops to partial mast rewiring.
• Perform new met. mast installation checks using in-house drones and post-processing software tools.
• Ensure measurement equipment, in operation and in storage, are kept in good working condition and stored appropriately.
• Identify and implement improvements to Mainstream’s procedures and templates to support alignment with industry best practice and continuous improvement of the Energy Analysis function.
• Climbing of wind mast to perform installation quality-checks will be required.
• Traveling away from home and working at remote site – max. 5 working days away from home.

What We Require:

• Qualifications: A degree or equivalent, Electrical, or Electronic will be required.
• A level 1 Rope Access certificate or willing to be trained at working at heights
• A working knowledge of typical wind, solar, and lidar measurement equipment and installation in accordance with the IEC61400 code or MEASNET guidelines.
• Experience in Construction Management of meteorological wind masts, solar stations, and lidar installations in South Africa.
• Pro-active, goal oriented with excellent attention to detail.
• Meteorology and/or measurement station experience a distinct advantage.
• Able to fault-find, identify issues, problems and opportunities; make timely decisions; develop appropriate and innovative solutions; and ask for assistance if required.
• Excellent communication skills and ability to develop professional relationships with suppliers and contractors
• Experience in MS Office.
• Programming in Python (e.g. Jupyter Notebook).
• Experience in LoggerNet setups and logger configuration.
• Excellent verbal and written English. Other languages in South Africa are advantageous.
• Willingness to travel domestically to sites which are generally in remote areas.
• Full and clean driving licence.
• Experienced drone pilot, or experience in drone data post-processing, or willing to be trained as an in-house drone pilot.

Why you really should click that button 👇

We offer you the opportunity to work in a dynamic and entrepreneurial organisation, to be part of a diverse workplace with regards to gender, age and cultural background in the most exciting industry in the world today. You will receive a very competitive total benefits package including an excellent base salary, bonus scheme and share options.

Career development

• Excellent training (an average 54 hours a year)
• Secondment and relocation opportunities
• Career progression (16% promotions across the Group in 2021)

Shared financial success

• A competitive, industry benchmarked and cost-of-living linked salary, reviewed annually
• Annual bonus
• Share options
• Salary contribution to your pension fund

Work/life balance

• WFH in a hybrid working arrangement
• Generous annual leave, plus a community or charity work day each year
• Paid maternity, paternity, adoptive and bereavement leave
• Allowance for WFH set up

True diversity & inclusion

• Equal opportunity targets
• GWEC Women in Wind and Mainstream Women in Renewables programmes
• You can be you, whatever your gender, colour or sexual orientation

Care for health & wellbeing

• Generous health insurance subsidy
• Income protection insurance
• Life cover
• Free Employee Assistance Program

These are just some of the reasons why we are officially certified as a Great Place to Work.

Apply for this job now and see how we can energise your career!