Associate Inverters Engineer

About Lightsource bp

Lightsource bp is a global leader in the development and management of solar energy projects. We are a 50:50 joint venture with bp with a mission to help drive the world’s transition to low carbon energy.

With solar set to increase tenfold in the next 20 years, we are well-positioned to capitalize on this growth. By joining the Lightsource bp team, you will ‘be the change’ on the world’s energy transition to a more sustainable future.

We pride ourselves on our entrepreneurial spirit as we continue to push the boundaries of an ever-changing energy landscape.

By choosing a career with us, you can expect a challenging and fulfilling role surrounded by people who are passionate and have brilliant ideas about sustainable technology, innovation and making the world a better place.

What You’ll do (the role)

Summary

This role will collaborate with one of our Subject Matter Experts in the LSbp Engineering Centre of Excellence.

The successful candidate will join a diverse and dynamic team who support the existing global solar portfolio, as well as support growth by performing technical and commercial assessment of inverters for PV Projects at any project stage: development, design, construction and commissioning, as well as in operation stage upon request.

Close coordination with Innovation, Procurement, Construction, Grid, Quality, O&M and Asset Management teams are key tasks for this Global role.

Duties and responsibilities

Engineering Support

• Develop and maintain Functional Technical Specifications, Standards, Certifications, Digital files, and Data Sheets for PV inverters and principal MV related hardware (switchgears, transformers) including scope of supply, technical and QA/QC requirements, design requirements, H&S guidelines, etc.
• Scouting renewable market to evaluate best technologies, manufacturers and products suitability for LSbp’s fleet of projects, as well as reliability, product performance, manufacturing capacity, etc.
• Develop and continuously update Global PV inverters Road Map.
• Review of calculation reports and electrical designs for PV inverters.
• Manage and coordination of external consultants to complete any internal assessments.
• Participate in any PV inverter troubleshooting in operating projects.
• Development of a positive interface with key inverters manufacturers.
• Development of tools and templates to provide services and analysis to different stakeholders.
• Provide knowledge dissemination throughout the company in aspects related to inverters
• Procurement and Business Support.
• Release quarterly PV inverters portfolio and MV equipment in the White List acceptable to LSbp.
• Monitor supply market’s contractor pool, technology, innovation and cost trends regularly.
• Identify supplier development and improvement opportunities and propose business cases in coordination with Procurement Category Manager and commercial/development teams.
• Conduct the technical review of PV inverters and optimal MV configuration in tendering projects or portfolio of projects in alignment with relevant stakeholders like procurement, legal, construction, grid, asset management to ensure best value for LSbp, creating balanced technical tabulations.
• Update and optimize total cost of ownership (Capex, Opex) of inverter and related MV components and its life cycle.
• Work with procurement department to negotiate supply contracts with vendors.
• Cooperate with grid team to properly specify every project particular requirement on grid code compliance.

Who we’re looking for

Knowledge & Experience

• Experience undertaking electrical calculations, electrical design or product evaluation for PV inverters.
• Experience in detailed PV inverter design using specialized calculation or modelling software.
• Experience in on-site construction of utility scale ground mounted PV plants.
• Familiarity with international electrical design codes.
• Familiarity with different PV inverters technologies, such as central, string, integration in power stations, etc.
• Familiarity with QA tests (FAT methodologies, FMEA) for PV inverters.
• Experience in complex technical-commercial processes related to utility PV inverters and associated MV equipment.
• Familiarity with the requirements of Asset Management (electrical hazards investigation, retrofit upgrades, technical due diligence).
• Ability to work with variety of software packages, such as Microsoft Word, Outlook, PowerPoint, Excel, to produce correspondence and documents and maintain presentations, records, spreadsheets and databases.
• Ability to produce Excel vba based tools and spreadsheets.
• Experience in a similar role is a key advantage.

Why you’ll make a great member of the team

Personal & Work Skills

• Excellent oral and written communication skills. Ability to discuss complex situations with others both in person and remotely.
• Strong analytical skills and attention to detail to identify root cause technical issues.
• Strategic thinking abilities.
• Flexible, reliable, assertive, consistent & with a “can do” attitude.
• Forward thinking, a problem solver and solution provider (solution oriented)
• Able to promote a positive working culture within the team and in a cross-functional areas role
• Team player, Self-starter, self-motivated and self-confident.
• Present yourself with integrity, credibility and professionalism.
• Ability to prioritize and great manager of time.
• Driving license and availability to travel around 25% of time.

Education & Experience

• Degree or master’s degree, in Electrical Engineering or similar.
• Fluent English spoken and written. Additional languages are a plus.
• Significant amount of professional experience in technical roles in the inverters marketplace or equivalent.
• Experience in using quantitative methods and data analytics tools (python, R, SQL) to investigate field data is a plus.

Why you’ll want to work for us

Our company is a place where you can be yourself and grow; a place where your ideas and opinions matter.

Be you

We pride ourselves on being an inclusive community, where every individual is valued and treated with respect.

Be responsible

Our culture is driven by our core values. From operating safely to ensuring our solar projects are responsible and promote biodiversity.

Be recognized

Alongside a competitive salary, we offer a variety of benefits including annual bonus, retention bank, health insurance, pension and other local benefits.

Be inspired

Beyond your day-to-day working life at Lightsource bp, there’s a variety of initiatives that will contribute to your own personal development. Initiatives to get involved with including our charitable causes, supporting our solar honey project or our sustainability initiatives.

Our Core Values

Lightsource bp truly cares about creating a sustainable future through safe, responsible and meaningful low carbon energy projects. Our core values of Safety, Integrity, Respect, Sustainability and Drive are the guiding principles for everything we do.