Senior Utility-Scale Renewable Energy Technical Expert at Mercy Corps

Purpose / Project Description

• Energy 4 Impact seeks a Senior Utility-Scale Renewable Energy Technical Expert to support NESP III in providing engineering and technical advisory services for largescale renewable energy projects (>15 MW).
• The expert will contribute to technical assessments, grid integration analysis, and preparation of technical documents for tenders and project implementation.

The Program / Department / Team

• Energy 4 Impact is Mercy Corps’ platform for shaping market systems in clean energy access. 
• We work at the intersection of policy and institutions, enterprise growth and finance, ecosystem coordination, and evidence and market intelligence.
• Our comparative advantage lies in blending the advisory capabilities of a specialist firm with the geographic presence and community reach of an NGO.
• We translate programme investment into strategic, market-credible solutions: building the conditions under which private investment flows into previously high-risk energy access markets.

Consultant Activities
The Consultant will undertake the following responsibilities:

• Provide technical leadership on utility-scale solar or hybrid renewable energy (RE) project development.
• Conduct grid integration studies, network analysis, and generation modelling.
• Prepare technical specifications, BoQs, tender documents, and engineering packages.
• Support technical due diligence for largescale RE proposals.
• Ensure compliance with international engineering standards and grid codes.
• Contribute to the development of technical guidelines and frameworks for RE integration.
• Deliver technical trainings and support stakeholder engagement.
• Collaborate with NESP advisors and local experts to ensure alignment with program objectives.
• Support reporting, documentation, and knowledge transfer activities.
• Introduce best practice grid stability and storage integration approaches to strengthen Nigeria’s future energy mix.
• Develop bankability enhancing tools, such as risk matrices, technical checklists, and quality assurance protocols for mini-grids.
• Support capacity building for state level electricity market actors under the new Electricity Act.
• Contribute to the development of a utility-scale RE project pipeline screening tool for NESP.

Consultant Deliverables
The Consultant will deliver the following:

• A technical package outlining development pathways, design considerations, and strategic guidance for utility‑scale solar or hybrid renewable energy projects.
• A grid integration report containing network analysis results, generation modelling outputs, and recommendations for integrating large‑scale RE into the grid.
• A complete engineering documentation set including technical specifications, Bills of Quantities, tender documents, and engineering design packages aligned with GIZ/NESP standards.
• A due diligence assessment report evaluating the technical feasibility, risks, and compliance of utility‑scale renewable energy proposals. This should also contain eligibility criteria against relevant international engineering standards and Nigerian grid codes.
• Inputs into national technical guidelines, standards, and frameworks for renewable energy grid integration, as needed by the client.
• Contributions to perioding reporting and knowledge outputs, including technical summaries, and documentation supporting institutional learning.
• An advisory note outlining best-practice approaches for integrated storage and enhancing grid stability in Nigeria’s energy mix.

Timeframe / Schedule:

• This assignment will take no longer than 35 days between May 2026 to December 2027, subject to performance and fund availability throughout this period.

The Consultant will report to:

• The consultant will report to the Senior Technical Analyst, Energy 4 Impact.

The Consultant will work closely with:

• The Team Leader, the MEL and Reporting Expert other technical and finance experts in the project, experts from implementing partner, the government counterparts, the finance and operations team

Required Experience & Skills
Education:

• Master’s Degree (or equivalent) in Electrical Engineering, Renewable Energy Engineering, Power Systems Engineering, or related field.

Languages:

• Excellent command of English (C1 level, CEFR).

Professional Experience:

• General: At least 12 years of experience in the energy sector.
• Specific: Minimum 10 years in renewable energy utility-scale projects (>15MW)
• Demonstrated experience in power system engineering, including network analysis and generation modelling
• Demonstrated experience using GIS tools (ArcGIS, QGIS, etc.) for site identification and planning.
• International experience: At least 7 years in at least two countries with economies in transition outside West Africa.
• Regional experience: At least 5 years of professional experience in West Africa, including a minimum of 1 year in Nigeria.
• At least 5 years of experience working on development cooperation projects.

Team Engagement and Effectiveness:

• Achieving our mission starts with how we build our team and collaborate.
• By bringing together individuals with a variety of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives, we strengthen our ability to solve complex challenges and drive innovation.
• We foster a culture of trust and respect, where every team member is valued for their contributions, empowered to reach their full potential, and motivated to do their best work.
• We recognize that building a strong and effective team is an ongoing process, and we remain committed to learning, improving, and growing together.