Lead – Decentralized Renewable Energy

Project Concern International; Delhi; On-site; INR 2,500,000 - 4,500,000; Full time

Job summary

PCI India invites a Lead – DRE to provide technical leadership across its decentralized renewable energy portfolio. You will bridge energy technology, enterprise economics and project development to scale productive-use solar solutions for rural livelihoods.

You will collaborate with programme teams, government partners and private partners to standardize, scale and replicate DRE models with strong focus on sustainability and impact.

Qualifications

• Bachelor or Master degree in electrical engineering, Energy Engineering, Renewable Energy or related technical discipline.
• Specialization or professional certification in solar energy, renewable energy or energy systems is an advantage.
• Strong grounding in solar PV, energy storage and distributed renewable energy systems.
• Understanding of Indian renewable-energy standards, regulations and policy frameworks.

Responsibilities

• Technical assessment and system design for solar and productive-use applications with load profiling.
• Evaluate technologies and conduct techno-economic assessments for proposed interventions.
• Provide technical advisory support to renewable-energy projects, including grant-funded and market-based models.
• Support due diligence, project development and advisory services for government- and public-sector initiatives.
• Develop reference designs, standard configurations and scalable models for recurring applications.
• Contribute to blending energy solutions with enterprise productivity and financing considerations.
• Assist in risk assessment, procurement specifications and vendor evaluations.

Skills

Solar PV systems

Renewable energy

Energy assessment

System sizing

Techno-economic

Business planning

Financial acumen

Problem solving

Stakeholder management

Technical communication

Training & mentoring

MS Office

Travel willingness

Education

Bachelors/Masters in electrical engineering

Energy/Renewable energy specialization

Job description

PCI India, a registered Indian society, has been working in India for the past 28 years. We drive interventions to transform the lives of communities at scale by solving complex development problems. In the past year, PCI India reached more than 2 crore (20 million) people across 200+ districts in 23 states.

Our Vision and Mission

Vision – A happy, healthy, safe and a sustainable world for all.

Mission – Rooted in community realities, we co create and scale sustainable solutions to complex development problems.

Our Values

• Excellence – Quality in everything no matter how small, is paramount.
• Respect – There is inherent value in all people for who they are and what they contribute.
• Collaboration – Only through collaboration we can address complex development problems.
• Boldness – Boldness requires disruptive thinking backed up by courage and conviction.
• Creativity – Creativity ensures dynamic responsiveness, relevance and impact.
• Integrity – Integrity is non-negotiable in both personal and professional domains.

PCI is an Equal Opportunity Employer

PCI is committed to providing equal opportunity to all working for it and in creating an inclusive work environment. We respect the diversity of our people and follow a fair, non-discriminatory approach in terms of gender, age, nationality race, caste, religion, community, marital status, physical challenge, and sexual orientation.

We promote diversity in the workplace and ensure a culture of zero tolerance to any form of discrimination, abuse or harassment whether sexual, physical or psychological.

PCI provides equal opportunity in recruitment, appraisals, promotion and career progression. Our people policies are fair, objective and non-discriminatory and everyone is expected to adhere to them.

About the Position:

Number of Position: 1

Grade: F

Type: Project Based

Qualification Required:

• Bachelor or Master degree in electrical engineering, Energy Engineering, Renewable Energy or a related technical discipline.
• Specialization or professional certification in solar energy, renewable energy or energy systems will be an advantage.
• Strong technical grounding in solar PV systems, energy storage and other distributed renewable energy systems.
• Sound understanding of relevant Indian renewable-energy standards, regulations and policy frameworks.

Experience Required:

• 8 to 12 years of relevant professional experience in solar energy, renewable energy, distributed energy systems or related fields.
• Demonstrated experience in solar system design, load assessment, system sizing, technical feasibility and techno-economic assessment.
• Experience in developing or providing technical advisory support to renewable-energy projects, preferably in productive-use, rural livelihood or decentralized energy applications.
• Experience in technology evaluation, technical due diligence, project development and/or renewable-energy business models will be preferred.
• Experience working with government departments, public-sector institutions or government led renewable-energy and rural development programmes will be an advantage.

Skills & Attribute:

• Knowledge about Solar PV systems and decentralized renewable energy.
• Energy assessment, system sizing and technical design.
• Technology evaluation and techno-economic assessment.
• Renewable energy project design and business planning.
• Financial and commercial acumen.
• Problem-solving and analytical thinking.
• Partner and stakeholder management.
• Technical communication and negotiation.
• Training and mentoring.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office (Excel, PowerPoint, Word).
• Willingness to travel extensively.

About the Project

PCI India is expanding its work in decentralized renewable energy (DRE), with a focus on solar-based solutions for rural livelihoods, productive-use applications and women-led enterprises. Through initiatives such as DEWEE, PCI is working with government institutions, women’s collectives, enterprises, technology providers and financing partners to demonstrate how reliable and affordable clean energy can improve productivity, reduce operating costs, strengthen enterprise resilience and create new economic opportunities. As PCI expands this portfolio across states and applications, there is a need for dedicated technical leadership to ensure that proposed energy interventions are technically sound, commercially viable, context-appropriate and scalable.

About the Role

The Lead – DRE will provide technical and strategic leadership to PCI’s DRE portfolio. The position will bridge energy technology, productive-use applications, enterprise economics, project development and implementation, supporting PCI to move from individual interventions and pilots towards
standardized, scalable and replicable DRE models.

The role will work closely with programme teams, government partners, technology providers, financial institutions, philanthropic and CSR partners, and other ecosystem stakeholders.

The objective of the position is to provide technical leadership and domain expertise in decentralized renewable energy for the conceptualization, design, development, implementation and scale-up of PCI’s energy portfolio.

The Lead – DRE will translate identified energy and livelihood requirements into appropriate technical and commercially viable solutions through energy assessment, system design, technology evaluation, techno-economic analysis, feasibility assessment and technical project oversight.

The position will also contribute to the development of reference designs, business models, technical standards and scalable DRE solutions that can be replicated across geographies and applications.

A key responsibility will be to ensure that DRE interventions are designed not simply as energy-access solutions, but as productive assets that improve enterprise productivity, income, affordability, reliability and long‑term sustainability.

Key Responsibilities:

• Technical Assessment & System Design
  • Conduct energy demand assessments, load analysis and energy-use profiling for women-led enterprises, productive-use applications, rural businesses and other decentralized energy requirements.
  • Assess existing energy sources, consumption patterns, operating costs, reliability and opportunities for renewable-energy transition.
  • Develop appropriate system configurations, including PV capacity, battery storage, inverter capacity, backup systems and balance‑of‑system requirements based on application and load characteristics.
  • Undertake site‑level and application‑level technical feasibility assessments considering solar resource, load profile, site conditions, grid availability, storage requirements and operating environment.
  • Prepare and/or review technical specifications, design parameters, reference designs and indicative BoQs for proposed interventions.
  • Develop standardized technical configurations for recurring applications such as food processing, irrigation, tailoring, retail, rural service enterprises and other productive use applications.
  • Ensure that system designs are appropriate to local operating conditions, user requirements and expected enterprise growth.
• Technology Evaluation & Techno‑Economic Assessment
  • Evaluate solar PV, battery storage and other renewable‑energy technologies based on performance, efficiency, reliability, durability, maintainability and lifecycle requirements.
  • Undertake comparative assessment of technology options and system configurations.
  • Conduct total cost of ownership and lifecycle cost assessments to inform technology and investment decisions.
  • Develop CAPEX, OPEX, replacement and lifecycle cost estimates and provide technical inputs to project financial and business models.
  • Assess the commercial viability and affordability of proposed DRE solutions from the perspective of end users and enterprises.
  • Review technical proposals, designs and solutions submitted by technology providers, consultants and potential partners and provide independent technical recommendations.
  • Support technical due diligence of technology solutions, products and providers, including assessment of warranties, after‑sales service, performance guarantees and maintenance arrangements.
• Project Development & Technical Advisory
  • Provide technical leadership in the conceptualization and design of new DRE, clean‑energy and productive‑use projects.
  • Provide technical inputs to feasibility studies, concept notes, proposals, business cases, investment models and funding applications.
  • Develop technical frameworks, reference architectures and scalable models for recurring DRE applications.
  • Advise programme teams on technology choices, system configurations, technical standards, procurement specifications and design considerations.
  • Assess technical risks, assumptions, dependencies and implementation constraints and recommend mitigation measures.
  • Support the development of business models that connect energy solutions with enterprise productivity, income enhancement, cost savings and financing.
  • Provide technical inputs to blended‑finance and market‑based approaches for enabling women led enterprises to adopt productive‑use DRE assets.
  • Contribute to the development of models that can transition from grant‑supported