Specialist - Consenting

Contact Energy Ltd; Wellington; Hybrid; NZD 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Free health insurance

Boosted KiwiSaver

Contact Shares access

Good to be Home payment

Parental leave policy

Job summary

Contact Energy is seeking a Specialist - Consenting to drive and support consenting activity across our renewable development, reconsenting and operational asset portfolio. This role goes beyond a narrow process and contributes to shaping how we approach complex projects, governance, planning, and continuous improvement across the business.

You will work with a team of highly skilled technical experts to deliver high-quality consenting outcomes and ensure alignment with Contact’s mission to lead

Qualifications

• Strong consenting capability and experience with complex projects.
• Ability to navigate ambiguity and build cross-functional relationships.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Practical, collaborative style with a continuous improvement mindset.

Responsibilities

• Lead or support resource consent applications and reconsenting programmes across the portfolio.
• Collaborate with technical specialists, consultants and legal advisers to deliver high-quality outcomes.
• Identify risks, dependencies and critical paths early and manage with project teams.
• Support strategies balancing environment, stakeholders, commercial and delivery goals.
• Partner with Renewable Growth, Sustainability, Generation and Trading teams to enable delivery.
• Build internal relationships to integrate consenting into project delivery.
• Engage with regulators, tāngata whenua, landowners and communities to build trust.
• Improve consenting systems, governance, reporting and ways of working.
• Increase visibility of programmes, milestones and risks across the portfolio.
• Bring continuous improvement mindset, including tech/data/AI-enabled approaches.

Skills

Consenting expertise

Complex environments

Relationship building

Communication

Education

Degree in planning/resource management/environmental management/law/engineering/business

Job description

Te Tākinatanga - Our Story

At Contact, we believe home is the most important place in the world. That belief shapes everything we do, from leading the energy transition to how we power Aotearoa and care for our people and communities.

Company Description

Te Tākinatanga - Our Story

At Contact, we believe home is the most important place in the world. That belief shapes everything we do, from leading the energy transition to how we power Aotearoa and care for our people and communities.

We’re a power, broadband, and mobile company, but we’re also investing boldly in renewable energy and smarter, more connected ways of working (mahi). Our ambition is simple: to leave Aotearoa better than we found it.

Guided by our values & behaviours, we’re a team who care deeply about the work we do, how we support one another, and the impact we have. Simply put, we touch lives to make life better.

Consenting is a critical part of how we deliver on that purpose. It gives Contact the approvals, stakeholder confidence and regulatory certainty needed to develop new renewable generation, support hydro reconsenting, optimise existing assets and maintain our licence to operate.

As our development and reconsenting portfolio grows in scale and complexity, consenting has an increasingly strategic role to play. It helps balance commercial outcomes, environmental stewardship, stakeholder expectations and long‑term asset value. This role sits at the heart of that mahi, helping us deliver high-quality consenting outcomes while improving the way consenting is planned, governed and delivered across the business.

Job Description

Te Whiwhinga mahi | The Opportunity

As a Specialist - Consenting, you’ll drive and support consenting activity across Contact’s renewable development, reconsenting and operational asset portfolio.

This is not a narrow process role. Yes, delivering strong consenting outcomes is core to the mahi, but the opportunity is broader than that. You’ll be part of a critical consenting function that is helping shape how Contact approaches complex projects, cross‑functional ways of working, stakeholder engagement, governance, planning and continuous improvement.

You’ll be joining a team with strong technical expertise and a clear focus on lifting how consenting supports Contact’s mission to lead New Zealand’s renewable energy future.

In this role, you will:

• Lead or support resource consent applications, reconsenting programmes and statutory approvals across Contact’s portfolio.
• Work with technical specialists, consultants and legal advisers to deliver high-quality consenting outcomes.
• Identify consenting risks, opportunities, dependencies and critical path issues early, then work with project teams to manage them well.
• Support consenting strategies that balance environmental, stakeholder, commercial and delivery outcomes.
• Partner closely with Renewable Growth, Sustainability, Generation and Trading, Corporate Affairs and project teams to support successful delivery.
• Build strong internal relationships and help connect teams so consenting is well understood, well planned and well integrated into project delivery.
• Support engagement with regulators, tāngata whenua, landowners, communities and other stakeholders in a way that builds trust and supports durable outcomes.
• Contribute to improving consenting systems, tools, governance, reporting and ways of working.
• Help create greater visibility of consenting programmes, milestones, risks and dependencies across the portfolio.
• Bring a continuous improvement mindset to how consenting is planned, prioritised and delivered, including where technology, data or AI-enabled approaches could improve efficiency and effectiveness.

Ko wai koe | About You

You’ll bring strong consenting expertise, but just as importantly, you’ll know how to work well in complexity.

This role will suit someone who can bring technical credibility, sound judgement and a collaborative approach to work that is not always black and white. You’ll be comfortable navigating ambiguity, building relationships across different teams and helping shape new ways of working.

You could come from energy, infrastructure, natural resources, large project environments, consultancy or a regulatory background. What matters most is that you understand complex consenting, can work at pace, and can bring people with you along the way.

You’ll likely bring:

• A degree in planning, resource management, environmental management, law, engineering, business or a related discipline.
• Experience managing or supporting complex consenting, environmental or infrastructure projects.
• A strong understanding of resource management and environmental legislation.
• The ability to understand how consenting decisions influence project value, risk and delivery.
• Strong project management and organisational skills, with the ability to maintain visibility across milestones, risks, dependencies and priorities.
• Well-developed communication skills, including the ability to influence, engage and explain complex information clearly.
• Confidence building trusted relationships with internal teams and external stakeholders, including tāngata whenua, regulators, communities and landowners.
• A practical, collaborative style and willingness to work across functions to achieve shared outcomes.
• A continuous improvement mindset, with the confidence to challenge existing ways of working constructively.
• The ability to make sound decisions in complex environments where roles, responsibilities or pathways may still be evolving.

Additional Information

If you bring strong consenting capability, good judgement and the confidence to work across a complex environment, we’d love to hear your story.

We support flexible working where it works for the individual, the team and the business. This role is best suited to someone who can work flexibly from Wellington, Taupō, Tauranga or Auckland to enable strong in person connection and collaboration.

Contact is not a place you’ll stagnate. We’re growing, evolving, and investing in our people. We also offer a bunch of other perks like free health insurance cover, boosted KiwiSaver, access to Contact Shares, a ‘Good to be Home’ annual payment toward your home set up & wellbeing, a trail-blazing parental leave policy, twice yearly payments towards our products if you’re a Contact customer, and more!

Applications close on Friday 4th September

Te Mata Hiko (Contact Energy) does not accept any CVs received from recruitment agencies where a formal engagement has not been confirmed and agreed to with our Talent team. In the event that unsolicited CVs are submitted by recruitment agencies, Te Mata Hiko (Contact Energy) reserves the right to contact these candidates directly and consider them for current/future vacancies without any financial obligation to the recruitment agency in question. This will also apply to any CVs sent directly to line managers.

We have a rich community of talented people that we support to thrive at Contact.

We’re committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels valued, respected, and empowered to bring their whole selves to work. Our goal is to reflect the diversity of our customers and communities to help build a better Aotearoa New Zealand.

Our inclusive hiring process is designed to embrace the diversity of Aotearoa New Zealand, ensuring a wide range of perspectives are included in our decision-making and helping reduce bias along the way.

The wellbeing of our kaimahi is super important to us.

We use employee insights to offer a range of initiatives and resources to support physical, mental, financial and emotional wellbeing – including flexible working arrangements, employee network groups and a market-leading parental leave policy.

At Te Mata Hiko, we want everyone to thrive. We welcome applicants far and wide – of every age, stage, background, and pride. Join us and be part of a team that values your passion and attitude just as much as your experience and skills.

Please note, only candidates with the right to live and work in New Zealand will be considered for this role.

Research shows that while men apply to jobs where they meet 60% of the criteria, women and those in underrepresented groups tend to only apply if they tick every box. We're not about box ticking, so if you think you have what it takes but don't meet everything stated above, please still get in touch. We'd love to kōrero.