Project Manager Construction & Asset Management in Portugal

Project Manager (Construction & Asset Management) in Portugal.

Velto Renewables (Velto), a subsidiary of CDPQ (Caisse de Dépôt et Placement de Québec), is looking for a Project Manager (Construction & Asset Management), working closely with the Head of Development and Construction and the Iberia Portfolio Manager of the company, to successfully complete the construction of a solar PV and wind portfolio of assets of Velto in Portugal, followed by asset management of the projects once in operation.

Velto Renewables is an investor, investments manager and long-term owner of renewable energy projects. Established in 2020 and backed by global investment group CDPQ, Velto Renewables is committed to contributing to the decarbonization of the global economy by investing in and developing an international and multi-technology portfolio of renewable energy projects. Velto currently owns 218 MW of operating solar PV projects in Spain, manages a 25% investment in a 630 MW offshore wind farm in the United Kingdom, develops a 1+GW of greenfield projects in Iberia, and is seeking to grow its portfolio by becoming a local player in the countries and regions where it invests.

The Project Manager will supervise the construction process and asset management of a portfolio of renewable projects to ensure quality, schedule adherence, and cost control across the Portuguese market. This role is ideal for a candidate with experience in renewable energy project construction and strong contract management skills, especially within the solar energy sector.

This is a position open to Portuguese residents or Spanish expats.

Responsibilities

During construction phase:

• General construction supervision management of the PV and wind assets.
• Monitor the EPC contractor, third parties, and stakeholders' construction activities to ensure the timely fulfilment of obligations and compliance with the contractual terms.
• Supervision and control that, during the construction phase, the Building Permit and rest of permits' requirements are respected.
• Supervision and control of all works execution, including but not limited to:
  BOP, PV modules installation, wind turbines erection, installation internal interconnections, substation and TSO/DSO e interconnection, testing, commissioning, etc.
• Supervision and control of technical /Time Schedule /H&S/Quality issues during construction

During operational phase:

• General technical asset management of the PV and wind assets.
• Monitor the Service Provider's activity (Asset Management & O&M) to ensure the timely fulfilment of obligations and compliance with the contractual terms (responsible for the day-to-day relationship).
• Communication with key stakeholders (market players, O&M, land, government and other suppliers or services providers).
• Become familiar with the contracts for each SPV to understand the respective obligations of both parties.
• Supervision of contractual obligations and technical, commercial and legal regulations.
• Review Site Preventative Maintenance Plans (PMP) and monitor performance against objectives.
• Monitoring of the cybersecurity plan
• Review monthly maintenance reports, identify failings, and propose an appropriate response.

General responsibilities:

• Strong supervision of contractual obligations and technical, commercial and legal regulations.
• Ensuring a high level of compliance with all HSE requirements and quality control.
• Good understanding of project design drawings and able to participate in discussions with designers, contractors and certification engineers.
• Budget and cost supervision to ensure fulfilment of contractual obligations.
• Supervise contracting and tender processes.
• Reporting of project status, recommending solutions and informing about potential risks to the Management of the company.
• Management and supervision of payment approval and document preparation processes in accordance with the requirements of the project schedule.
• Support coordination of internal information flow with the rest of the company's areas, e.g.:
  Finance, Legal, Development, Asset Management.
• Review Service Provider's policies, processes, and procedures to ensure procedural, legislative and contract requirements are correctly fulfilled.
• Monitoring and reporting of KPIs.
• Implementation of improvement and optimization plans.
• Support and develop various reporting activities.
• Support the company on technical M&A activities.

Competencies

• In depth knowledge and good, demonstrable experience supervising the execution of wind and solar PV projects. Previous experience in Portugal will be valuable.
• Strong contract management experience (EPC, O&M, Asset Management) contracts.
• Must be autonomous and pro-active:
  develop own workstreams and work across many different functions
• Good understanding of contractual, financial and legal concepts related to renewable energy.
• Good level of comfort with data management:
  proficient at extracting and analysing large amounts of data and presenting information in an easy-to-understand way.
• Ability to develop and implement report templates, analytical tools, and other construction specific tools.
• Good team player with excellent communication skills, both verbal and written.
• Excellent soft skills to liaise with partners, public authorities and third parties.
• High level of proficiency with MS Office suite of products.
• Valid driver's licence.
• Availability to travel across Portugal.

Education and experience

• Bachelor's and-or Master's degree in relevant discipline (Engineering or similar).
• Excellent command of written and spoken English, upper intermediate level of Portuguese.
• Between 3 and 7 years' experience within the renewable energy industry working in construction of wind and PV projects.
• Technical knowledge of other technologies.