Environmental Analyst (Solar)

The Environmental Analyst role sits within WiseEnergy’s Commercial team. The focus of the role is to manage environmental obligations and plans (e.g. Landscape & Ecology Management Plans – “LEMP”) and land management requirements across WiseEnergy’s clients ensuring solar plants:

• comply with requirements set out by Local Planning Authorities (“LPA”);
• achieve client environmental targets;
• support WiseEnergy’s and cliental Environmental and Social Governance (“ESG”) standards and aims.

It is a permanent, full time role, starting as soon as possible and reporting to the UK Commercial Manager. The successful candidate will either be based in our London Mayfair office (2-3 days per week).

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

This is an integral role in the WiseEnergy team, including:

• Reviewing, extracting and maintaining a database of LEMP obligations and associated deadlines from planning consents to clearly map environmental requirements for each asset.
• Arranging and tracking relevant ecology site surveys/monitoring studies as per LEMP compliance requirements. Extraction of recommended actions and coordinate with the relevant stakeholders to action as per budget. Submit reports as required to required parties as necessary.
• Advising on LEMP conditions where amendments to planning consent should be considered and work with planning consultants on applications as necessary.
• Ensuring plant compliance with LEMPs (or equivalent) by working with O&Ms, landscaping contractors, ecologists, landowners or any other contracted counterparty to deliver site land management requirements, including tendering, contracting and agreeing timings.
• Management of associated contractors and O&Ms including: reviewing contractor reports quality check of services carried out by contractors on site; advising on improvements to O&M practices, where required, to optimize biodiversity/mitigate impacts on habitats/wildlife; tracking contractor performance (e.g. on time/late/delayed) (approving/holding invoice payment as necessary).
• Liaising with WiseEnergy’s in-house Site Managers to ensure environmental obligations and plans have been completed and maintained as required. Where LEMP non-compliance is flagged, coordinate with the relevant stakeholders to rectify the issues on site to communicate risks to the client.
• Provide clients with regular updates on compliance across the portfolio and proposing additional environmental improvements to consider.
• Management and setting of annual biodiversity budgets/re-forecasts.
• Develop and manage landowner relationships in respect of any involvement required in delivering environmental management plans, especially when there are designated ecological mitigation areas outside of the site.
• Liaise directly with graziers to ensure live grazing licenses are in place for all grazed sites and are in line with the LEMP and Lease requirements.
• When required, work with planning consultants to respond to and mitigate any notices received from LPAs, working with internal and external stakeholders, as necessary.

SKILLS & COMPETENCIES

To be successful in this role, you will demonstrate:

• Time management & prioritization skills - things can get a little hectic, so the ability to effectively manage yourself and your workload is critical.
• Strong critical thinking, problem-solving skills and an eye for detail.
• Strong numeracy and analysis skills.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills in English - you must be able to organise your thoughts in a way that others find clear and compelling. You will be expected to write well-structured, grammatically correct emails and other communications. When communicating verbally – whether over the phone, on video calls, in person or in meetings – you will need to be articulate, warm, and engaging and sometimes need to negotiate.
• Flexibility - being an effective team player means being flexible in your approach and open to getting involved with new things, even if they are not spelled out in your job description.
• Intellectual Curiosity – Commercial management is a broad and nuanced field, and we are looking for someone who is truly interested in our profession and has the intellectual curiosity to delve deep into topics and bring fresh ideas to the team.
• IT Literacy - you need to be comfortable with IT systems and working with data (you should have at least intermediate-level excel).
• Delivery focus – it may sound obvious, but the ability to proactively churn through work at pace and deliver quality outputs really matters.
• Passion for our mission - generate a more sustainable future by leading the transition to clean energy.
• Our values: be a leader, build trust, be responsible, be innovative and ‘bring your alpha’.

EXPERIENCE & QUALIFICATIONS

• Minimum 2 years in a similar level role.
• Bachelors’ degree in environmental-related courses minimum.
• Land Management and/or environmental planning experience and knowledge.
• Fluent in English and fluency in a second language (e.g., Spanish, Italian, or Portuguese) would be an advantage.
• Advanced standard MS Office suite, notably Word, PowerPoint, Excel, etc.
• Strong organisational, change management and business process skills.
• The right to work in the UK.

WHAT WE OFFER

• A busy role in a supportive team, with plenty of opportunities to learn.
• International exposure – we operate in over 8 countries.
• Hybrid working – we will need you in the London office at least twice a week, but you will normally be able to work remotely for the remainder of the week.
• Holiday as per company norms.
• Healthcare for you and qualifying dependents.
• Annual discretionary bonus.

HOW TO APPLY

If you are interested in this opportunity, please follow the link to apply or send your application. If you have been shortlisted for the next stage, we will be in contact within 7 days. By selecting “Apply” or sending us your CV, you indicate you have read and acknowledged NextEnergy Group’s Candidate Privacy Notice.