Energy Specialist

05 August 2024

Kyiv/Odesa

ERA BACKGROUND

AGRI-UKRAINE GRAIN EXPORT LOGISTICS

USAID’s Economic Resilience Activity (ERA) is one of USAID’s core partners implementing the $350 million Agriculture Resilience Initiative – Ukraine (AGRI-Ukraine) that was established in 2022 to bolster Ukrainian agricultural exports and alleviate the global food security crisis exacerbated by the war. Under AGRI-Ukraine, ERA partners with public and private companies to complement and leverage urgently-needed grain transportation and transshipment investments.

INFRASTRUCTURAL IMPROVEMENTS

ERA also directly supports the Government of Ukraine, including the State Agency for Restoration and Development of Infrastructure of Ukraine (SARDI), the State Customs Service and Ukrainian Railways, to upgrade 42 of Ukraine’s border crossing points (BCPs). Modern and more efficient border infrastructure and customs procedures will reduce export costs and increase export capacity, enabling Ukraine to scale trade and advance its path to EU integration.

ENERGY AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE SUPPORT

As one of USAID’s most flexible activities that responds to emerging and/or emergency needs, ERA is expanding its interventions that assist Ukraine businesses, communities or individuals in the fall and winter (September 2024-December 2025). The goal is to minimize the impact on the Ukrainian people and economy given recent power deficits. This is an adaptive component and ERA may also need to respond to other emergency needs in the face of ongoing Russia’s full-scale war and attacks on Ukraine’s critical infrastructure.

JOB OVERVIEW

The Energy Specialist is a key member of the EER Team and plays a pivotal role in assuring adherence to power energy regulations, energy solutions development, and power engineering systems. He/ She will invest in providing energy response analysis support to the technical team and ensure the preparation of power- and energy-related and environmental assessments for project activities and interventions. The Energy Specialist supports field examinations, reports on reports on locations, equipment, and materials necessary to assembly and commission power energy installations, and maintains power- and energy-related documentation related to ERA’s projects. The Energy Specialist works in close coordination with the AGRI and BCP technical staff and Environmental Compliance team to ensure power- and energy-related and environmental assessment for ERA’s interventions; and will report to the Energy Response Manager and be based in Kyiv or Odesa.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

  • Coordinate and review testing and analysis of potential power- and energy-related and environmental hazards;
  • Support the ERA’s interventions, ensuring energy response compliance of activities and interventions;
  • Monitor project power- and energy-related and environmental impact and report on compliance with USAID power- and energy-related and environmental policy;
  • Participate in the evaluation of power- and energy-related and environmental risks of proposals submitted by subcontractors and beneficiaries in line with their reliability and ability to achieve the goals with a focus on the safe export of Ukraine’s agricultural products, infrastructure improvement, and emergency and energy response.
  • Conduct site visits to assess subcontractors and beneficiaries’ energy response compliance, provide guidance on environmental hazards mitigation if needed;
  • Oversee and monitor field implementation of energy response and environmental mitigation measures;
  • Ensure submission of required internal power- and energy-related and environmental documentation related to ERA’s interventions to the DAI ‘s experts based in headquarter and coordinate with them further documentation preparation process;
  • As required, coordinate energy response training and technical assistance;
  • Undertake additional actions required by the Deputy Chief of Party to ensure compliance with USAID and Ukraine power- and energy-related and environmental regulations policies;
  • Perform other tasking as directed by the ERA senior management.

Communication:

  • In close collaboration with the Director for Communication and Change Management, represent ERA in a professional manner to the key audiences;
  • Proactively engage with target communities to identify opportunities to promote energy response attentiveness of the local communities.

Monitoring & Evaluation:

  • Manage activities to implement workplan at improving ERA’s indicator for energy response compliance;
  • Coordinate with MEL team regular data collection, its progress, relying on innovative data-gathering methods when appropriate;
  • Capture the output and outcome level data, document and report the results in a timely manner.

Reporting:

  • Compile the Energy Response Compliance reports for the ERA management on a regular basis;
  • Oversee Energy Response Compliance of the awards through the review of reports, correspondence, site visits, etc.
  • Prepare accurate and timely progress reports on a quarterly basis and contribute to preparation of annual reports;
  • Perform other duties as assigned by the DCOP and COP.

QUALIFICATIONS

  • Advanced degree in Power Engineering, Renewable Energy Sources Engineering, Power Mechanical Engineering, or relevant field;
  • Experience in Ukrainian power energy and technical compliance procedures for the enterprises of different industries;
  • Minimum 5 years of relevant professional experience;
  • Work experience with international companies or donors- funded projects preferred;
  • Spoken and written fluency in English and Ukrainian is a must;
  • Experience producing technical reports and managing data;
  • Demonstrated ability to work and coordinate effectively with a wide variety of stakeholders.

JOB EXPECTATIONS:

In this position, you are expected to share the DAI four core values:

  • Integrity: commit to civil and ethical behavior, play by the rules, and do the right thing;
  • Responsibility: be accountable to clients, partners, grant recipients, beneficiaries, colleagues, and communities where we work. If you fall short, you own up, fix the problem, and get it right the next time;
  • Excellence: adhere to the highest technical and professional standards in innovation, learning, and service;
  • Global Citizenship: respect the cultural diversity and treat everyone everywhere with professionalism and dignity to make the world a better place.

WE OFFER

Contract length: 12-month employment agreement with a possibility of extension.

Benefits Package:

  • 28 calendar days of annual leave
  • 10 days of internal well-being paid leave per annum
  • Medical Insurance for ERA staff and their families
  • Life Insurance for ERA staff
  • Coverage of all expenses for the business trips
  • Military reservation is possible and granted if you are on a relevant military register

Start date: August 2024

Application process

All applicants must send a cover letter and updated CV (no longer than four pages) in English to ukraine@dai.com

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, or status as a protected veteran.

Closing date for applications: August 20, 2024.

For further information about DAI GLOBAL LLC, please consult our website era-ukraine.org.ua.