Project Director: Renewable Energy

Energy Vault; Cape Town; On-site; ZAR 1,200,000 - 1,800,000; Full time

Job summary

Energy Vault seeks a Project (Portfolio) Director to oversee renewable energy construction projects in South Africa. This role involves managing a portfolio of large-scale solar and wind projects, ensuring compliance with regulations, and leading a high-performing team. The ideal candidate should have extensive experience in project management within the renewable energy sector, excellent stakeholder engagement skills, and knowledge of South African energy policy. A competitive total remuneration package is offered, reflecting the seniority of the role and operational demands.

Benefits

Competitive remuneration package

Career progression opportunities

World-class working environment

Qualifications

• 10+ years of relevant experience managing utility-scale infrastructure or energy projects and construction, with at least 5 years in renewable energy.
• Proven track record of managing multiple utility-scale infrastructure or energy projects in portfolios.
• Deep understanding of South African energy policy, REIPPPP, EIA regulations, and local permitting processes.
• Experience managing EPC contracts (FIDIC, NEC) and stakeholder engagement in complex environments.
• Strategic leadership and portfolio governance.
• Strong commercial and contract management acumen.

Responsibilities

• Lead the strategic oversight, execution, and delivery of diverse renewable energy projects.
• Manage a portfolio of large-scale renewable energy projects through construction and into operations.
• Develop and maintain portfolio-level dashboards and KPIs to track project performance.
• Ensure compliance with South African regulations and environmental laws.
• Oversee project budgets and cash flow; ensure projects deliver within cost parameters.
• Build and mentor a high-performing project team.

Skills

Project Management

Stakeholder Engagement

Risk Management

Contract Management

Financial Management

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Construction Management, or related field

MBA, SACPCMP or PMP/Prince2 certification

Tools

MS Project

Primavera

ERP systems

Job description

About the Company

Since its establishment in 2008, Mulilo has grown into one of the leading Independent Power Producers (IPP) in Southern Africa. Mulilo is majority owned by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, the world’s leading private equity investor in renewable energy assets, through its New Markets Fund I. Mulilo has concluded numerous PPA's in both the Department of Mineral Energy's Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Programme (REIPPP) and with several large corporate energy users. Mulilo currently operates 450MW of wind and solar PV projects and has a further 500MW of projects under financial close and close to 1GWh of energy storage projects awarded with its partners. Having adopted a strategy that aligns with the company's long-term vision, Mulilo has accumulated a pipeline of projects exceeding 25GW, and is now positioned as a key player in the renewable energy sector.

Mulilo places strong emphasis on its human capital and prides itself in providing a world class working environment for all its employees, thereby placing huge value on career progression and personal growth.

Mulilo is guided by strong ethical principles and adheres to its environmental, social and governance responsibilities.

About Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP)

Founded in 2012, CIP is the world’s largest dedicated renewable energy fund manager and a global leader in offshore wind. CIP currently manages over 30 billion Euro’s, with a target of having 100 billion Euros under management by 2030. The funds managed by CIP focus on investments in offshore and onshore wind, solar PV, biomass and energy-from-waste, transmission and distribution, reserve capacity, storage, advanced bioenergy, and Power-to-X.

About this role

The Project (Portfolio) Director will lead the strategic oversight, execution, and delivery of a diverse portfolio of renewable energy construction projects across South Africa. This leadership role ensures that all projects align with corporate goals, regulatory standards, and environmental commitments, while maintaining cost, schedule, quality, and safety objectives.

Duties and responsibilities

Portfolio Management

• Direct and manage a portfolio of large-scale renewable energy projects (solar PV, wind, battery storage/ BESS) through construction and into operations.
• Develop and maintain portfolio-level dashboards and KPIs to track project performance, risks, and benefits realization.
• Align project execution with strategic business objectives and energy targets (e.g., REIPPPP, IRP).
• Support the transition from financial close to execution, ensuring handover readiness across functions.
• Support contract negotiations and alignment across PPA and EPC agreements.
  

Project Oversight & Leadership

• Lead project directors/managers, engineering teams, and EPC contractors through all phases: development, design, procurement, construction, commissioning, and handover/COD.
• Solid understanding of EPC, PPA, and O&M contract management, with experience negotiating commercial terms and claims management.
• Ensure effective stakeholder engagement with Eskom, DMRE, NERSA, environmental authorities, and community representatives.
• Maintain oversight of construction activities, including cost, schedule, and quality performance.
• Manage project close-out and transition to operations, ensuring smooth handover and asset readiness.

Risk & Compliance Management

• Identify portfolio-wide risks and mitigation strategies.
• Ensure compliance with South African regulations, environmental laws, grid codes, and health & safety standards.
• Support ESG, B-BBEE, and localization goals.
• Provide executive-level reporting on project progress, risks, and outcomes.

Financial Management

• Oversee project budgets and cash flow; ensure projects are delivered within cost parameters.
• Collaborate with the finance team for funding models, investor reporting, and ROI tracking.

Resource & Team Management

• Build and mentor a high-performing project team.
• Coordinate cross-functional input from legal, commercial, technical, and O&M departments.
  

Required skills and education background

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Construction Management, or related field; MBA, SACPCMP or PMP/Prince2 certification is advantageous.
• 10+ years of relevant experience managing utility-scale infrastructure or energy projects and construction, with at least 5 years in renewable energy.
• Proven track record of managing multiple utility-scale infrastructure or energy projects in a portfolios.
• Deep understanding of South African energy policy, REIPPPP, EIA regulations, and local permitting processes.
• Experience managing EPC contracts (FIDIC, NEC) and stakeholder engagement in complex environments.
• Strategic leadership and portfolio governance.
• Strong commercial and contract management acumen.
• Risk management and regulatory compliance.
• Excellent interpersonal and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Analytical, organized, and decisive under pressure.
• Proficiency in MS Project / Primavera / ERP systems.

Desirable attributes

The ideal candidate would have a passion for the Renewable Energy sector and personality traits would include a high level of diligence, determination, resilience, and agility.

Mulilo is an employer of choice and is offering an extremely competitive total remuneration package for this position.

Additional Information

Able to work overtime according to operational needs.

The position is based at the offices of the company, but travel may be required occasionally.