Legal Counsel H/F

Groupe CFAO; France; On-site; EUR 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Groupe CFAO, in France, seeks a proactive in-house counsel to provide legal support for renewable energy IPP projects across Africa, spanning development, construction, financing and operations. You will coordinate with lenders, external counsel, and internal teams to manage complex cross-border transactions and regulatory matters.

The role requires a strong ownership mindset, broad coverage across legal and compliance topics, and fluency in French.

Qualifications

• Willingness to learn and grow with the company.
• Ability to handle broad legal and compliance matters.
• Strong ownership and accountability.
• Solution-oriented, pragmatic and commercially minded.
• Proactive, drives projects forward.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management.
• High ethical standards and integrity.

Responsibilities

• Provide legal support for renewable energy IPP projects across Africa throughout the project lifecycle.
• Coordinate with lenders, external counsel and internal business teams on project finance transactions.
• Provide legal support for acquisitions, joint ventures and investment transactions as required by the business.
• Support regulatory, licensing and permitting matters across multiple African jurisdictions.
• Coordinate legal support relating to Project Companies, SPVs and HoldCos where appropriate.
• Coordinate and manage external legal counsel across multiple jurisdictions.
• Act as the primary legal focal point within AEOLUS while working closely with the CFAO Legal Department.
• Coordinate compliance activities within AEOLUS, including anti-corruption, third‑party due diligence, sanctions, conflict of interest and related matters, in close coordination with CFAO Compliance.
• Support ESG, sustainability and data privacy related legal matters together with the relevant internal stakeholders and external advisors.

Skills

Legal knowledge

Stakeholder management

Contract negotiation

Regulatory compliance

French fluency

Job description

• Provide legal support for renewable energy IPP projects across Africa throughout the project lifecycle, including development, construction, financing and operations.
• Support project finance transactions by coordinating with lenders, external legal counsel and internal business teams.
• Provide legal support for acquisitions, joint ventures and investment transactions as required by the business.
• Support regulatory, licensing and permitting matters across multiple African jurisdictions.
• Coordinate legal support relating to Project Companies, SPVs and HoldCos where appropriate.
• Coordinate and manage external legal counsel across multiple jurisdictions.
• Act as the primary legal focal point within AEOLUS while working closely with the CFAO Legal Department.
• Coordinate compliance activities within AEOLUS, including anti-corruption, third‑party due diligence, sanctions, conflict of interest and related matters, in close coordination with CFAO Compliance (Patrick, Faycal and the Compliance team).
• Support ESG, sustainability and data privacy related legal matters together with the relevant internal stakeholders and external advisors.

We are looking for a candidate who:

• Shows a strong interest in continuously learning new skills, legal developments and industry practices, and is motivated to grow with the company.
• Is comfortable handling a broad range of legal and compliance matters rather than limiting themselves to a narrow specialty, and enjoys working across diverse topics as needed by the business.
• Demonstrates a strong sense of ownership and accountability.
• Is solution‑oriented, pragmatic and commercially minded.
• Takes a proactive approach and enjoys driving projects forward rather than simply identifying legal risks.
• Is comfortable coordinating multiple stakeholders, including internal business teams, CFAO Legal, CFAO Compliance and external legal counsel.
• Is comfortable working in a fast‑growing, entrepreneurial and international environment.
• Has excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Balances legal risk management with business objectives.
• Demonstrates high ethical standards and integrity.
• Speaks fluent French (mandatory)
• Additional languages relevant to renewable energy business in Africa would be an advantage.