The O&M Owner’s Representative is SolarAfrica’s on-site authority responsible for protecting the Owner’s technical, commercial, and contractual interests at a 300 MW utility-scale solar PV facility operating a one-to-many IPP framework. This role manages and enforces the O&M Agreement with the Operator while ensuring compliance with the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), Implementation Agreement (IA), lender requirements, and South African regulatory frameworks. The role is accountable for plant performance, contract enforcement (including penalties and incentives), Eskom/grid interface, and audit-ready compliance, ensuring the asset delivers its expected financial and operational returns over its lifecycle.
Position of the job in the company:
The O&M Owner’s Site Representative (O&M Manager) will report directly to the Head of O&M /Technical Maintenance Manager.
Principal responsibilities:
Stakeholder & Interface Management
- Act as the primary on-site representative of SolarAfrica to the O&M Contractor, Eskom, and key stakeholders
- Coordinate between internal teams (Asset Management, Compliance, Finance) and external parties
- Maintain strong working relationships while enforcing accountability
Contract Management & Commercial Oversight
- Enforce the O&M Agreement, including KPIs, service levels, performance guarantees, penalties, and incentive mechanisms
- Validate monthly invoices against independently verified plant performance and availability calculations
- Issue formal notices of non-compliance, track corrective actions, and administer LDs where applicable
- Ensure clear alignment between Owner and Operator obligations to minimise contractual and financial risk
Performance Monitoring & Optimisation
- Monitor plant performance metrics, including availability, Performance Ratio (PR), and energy yield versus P50/P90 forecasts
- Identify performance deviations, investigate root causes, and formally escalate underperformance through contractual mechanisms
- Implement and track performance optimisation initiatives (e.g. cleaning strategies, tracker performance optimisation, inverter availability improvement)
- Track degradation trends and long-term asset performance against the financial model
Technical Oversight & Asset Integrity
- Build, implement, and maintain a Site Verification Plan including:
- Planned site inspections and spot checks
- Audit sampling of completed maintenance activities
- Verification standards for evidence (e.g. photographs, reports, test records)
- Verify that preventative and corrective maintenance activities are executed in accordance with OEM requirements and approved maintenance standards
- Validate that critical maintenance activities (e.g. inspections, testing, calibration) are completed at the required scope and frequency
- Maintain an Owner’s Defects & Repeat-Failure Register to identify recurring issues, systemic defects, and trend-based risks
- Oversee warranty claims, defect rectification, and close-out tracking
- Ensure availability and adequacy of critical spares, tooling, and test equipment
Grid Code, Safety & Regulatory Compliance
- Act as the primary Owner-side interface with Eskom/System Operator on planned and unplanned outages, curtailment, and incident reporting
- Ensure compliance with the South African Grid Code, NERSA requirements, PPA, and Implementation Agreement obligations
- Fulfil or support GMR 2(7) responsibilities under the OHS Act
- Ensure compliance with ORHVS requirements, Environmental Authorisation conditions, and statutory safety obligations
- Conduct safety and compliance audits and enforce contractor adherence to safety standards
- Promote and maintain a zero-harm safety culture
Lender & REIPPPP Compliance
- Ensure ongoing compliance with lender requirements, Lender’s technical advisor (LTA) expectations, and REIPPPP obligations
- Support audits by lenders, DMRE, Eskom, and Independent Engineers
- Ensure all reporting, documentation, and site conditions are accurate, complete, and audit-ready at all times
Risk, Governance & Reporting
- Maintain a live risk register covering technical, contractual, regulatory, and performance risks
- Identify and mitigate risks such as curtailment exposure, equipment failure, repeat defects, and underperformance versus the financial model
- Validate and submit monthly and annual performance and compliance reports
- Ensure integrity, accuracy, and traceability of SCADA and performance data
- Provide clear, decision-ready insights to support Asset Management and executive decision-making
Reporting & Data Integrity
- Validate and submit monthly and annual performance reports
- Ensure accuracy and integrity of SCADA and performance data
- Provide clear insights to support asset management decision-making
- Any other job duties associated with this role.
For each responsibility, consider where AI, automation, systems or technology can assist or enhance delivery. Roles should be designed for future ways of working, not manual or legacy processes.
Experience & Skills
- 5–8+ years’ experience in utility-scale renewable energy (solar PV preferred)
- Proven experience in O&M, EPC, or asset management environments
- Strong experience managing contractors and enforcing performance-based contracts
- Experience in REIPPPP or similar PPA-driven environments is highly advantageous
- Experience with HV systems and substation operations
- ERP / MS Dynamics experience: Advantageous
Specific attributes:
- Strong contractual and commercial acumen
- Ability to enforce performance standards and manage difficult contractor conversations
- High analytical capability (performance data, financial implications)
- Strong stakeholder engagement skills (Eskom, lenders, contractors)
- Excellent reporting and communication skills
- Strong attention to detail and data integrity
- High accountability and ownership mindset
Desirable attributes:
- Experience working on REIPPPP projects
- Eligibility for GMR 2(7) appointment
- ORHVS certification or HV operational training
- Knowledge of South African Grid Code and NERSA requirements
- Experience engaging with lenders, Independent Engineers, or auditors
What Does Success Look Like?
By month 3:
- I will have a full understanding of the O&M Agreement, PPA, and IA obligations
- I will have established strong working relationships with the Operator and Eskom
- I will have completed a full baseline assessment of plant performance vs financial model, compliance, and safety status
- I will have implemented a risk register and reporting framework
- I will have identified and started addressing key non-compliances and performance gaps
By month 6:
- I will have stabilised plant performance and improved contractor compliance
- I will have implemented structured KPI and SLA tracking
- I will have ensured accurate performance validation linked to contractor payments
- I will have progressed warranty claims and defect resolution
- I will have successfully supported lender / IE audits with no major findings
- I will have reduced safety and compliance gaps on site
By month 12:
- I can ensure the plant consistently meets or exceeds availability and PR targets and energy yield expectations
- I can enforce contractual mechanisms, including LDs where applicable
- I can implement performance optimisation initiatives
- I can establish a strong audit and compliance track record
- I can proactively identify and mitigate key asset risks
Core Values:
We hire, reward, and recognise our team against these values. It is imperative that you believe in these values and demonstrate them consistently.
- We are passionate and proud of what we do.
- We communicate candidly, especially when it is difficult
- We take the initiative, share our mistakes, and grow together
- We are dependable and take accountability
- No one person is bigger than the solution - no egos.
We are currently only considering candidates based in South Africa with valid working rights. Unfortunately, we are unable to consider applications from outside the country at this time