Senior Project Finance Specialist at Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA)

Job Description    

• The Senior Project Finance Specialist role is a project finance function located within the Independent Power Producer Office (IPPO).  The IPPO was established in 2010 to provide rapid solutions to South Africa’s severe electricity supply constraints, by procuring new energy generation capacity from Independent Power Producers (IPPs).  The IPPO was created as a project office hosted by the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) under a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) between the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE), now the Department of Electricity and Energy (DEE), National Treasury and the DBSA.  The mandate of the IPP Office is to provide specialised services to government, including a) IPP Energy Procurement Management, b) Monitoring, Evaluation and Contract Management, and c) Professional Advisory Services.  The IPPO’s skills, expertise and success in mobilising and delivering on time is recognised domestically and globally. 
• The Senior Project Finance Specialist will effectively advise on, develop, implement and manage all the financial and funding aspects required for bankable project financed based procurement documentation. These will involve different power producing projects that will include Renewable Energy, Battery Energy Storage, Gas to Power, and Hybrid energy facilities and now the Independent Transmission Infrastructure Procurement Programme - ITIPP.
• The role will report to the Head of Infrastructure Finance and will collaborate effectively with all other departments within the IPPO to deliver timeously on the IPPO's mandates and strategy.

Key Responsibilities    
These include but are not limited to:

Effective project finance management

• Contribute to the development of strategic plans for energy procurement
• Draft and review the conceptualization, design, and development of procurement documentation for the various programmes and manage Transactional Advisors involved in the process.
• Oversee the financial evaluation of received bids, negotiations on all relevant agreements, and the financial close process.
• Develop and maintain relationships and coordinate directly with project managers, legal team, technical team and advisors in the analysis, drafting of procurement documentation, negotiation, and execution of agreements/contracts.
• Confer with various stakeholders to assess project finance needs and consolidate to ensure that needs have been considered during the procurement phase.
• Conduct financial analysis, potential investment interests into potential projects and market related financial insights to support effective decision making

Effective and efficient reporting

• Create detailed reports and budgets in written and verbal form for presentation to stakeholders, senior management and internal audit staff, maintaining records with risk management
• Prepare reports and/or present to management on outcome of analysis performed in relation to risk allocation, bankability issues, optimisation & and any project finance activities related to projects
• Clearly articulate and consolidate the risk and rewards of potential transactions to the executive management team and provide recommendations for mitigation

Financial Modelling & Analysis

• Prepare and present financial reports to stakeholders
• Manage the elaboration of the documentation required for various project stakeholders, including building charts from spreadsheets to facilitate understanding of complex financial data
• Responsible for preparing, assisting with, and reviewing financial models and analyses, including those prepared by other team members, while also providing expertise and guidance on financing, accounting, and tax-related inputs.
• Provide oversight and assistance in the development and management of complex financial models utilised to inform key decision-making processes at both the project/programme-level and corporate-level.

Risk assessment and mitigation

• Develop risk assessments and potential risk mitigations.
• Manage various risk assessments performed and consolidate quantified results to influence strategic business decisions by management and key stakeholders
• Assess and manage financial risks associated with energy procurement activities and recommend mitigation measures
• Manage the budget for the various programmes in regards to the Financial Advisor requirements

People Enablement

• Model high performance behaviour in line with the leadership principles internally and externally.
• Create the conditions that enable the team to perform (e.g. team spirit, providing the right structure, involving the team in decision making).
• Source and manage scarce specialist skills and resources.
• Establish and monitor performance standards with direct reports.
• Provide regular feedback regarding staff performance.

Expertise & Technical Competencies    
The successful incumbent should have:

• Post Graduate Qualification in finance, accounting or related field. Advanced degree such as CA, CFA or MBA is preferred
• Extensive experience in project finance, preferably in the energy or public sector
• At least 10 years’ experience in providing financial advisory services preferably in large public procurement.
• At least 5 years’ experience in leadership roles
• Programme Management Experience. In-depth knowledge and understanding of Project Management and Project Finance methodologies
• Knowledge and understanding of financial business case management
• Knowledge and understanding of the public sector
• Knowledge and understanding of the principles of business strategy
• Knowledge of the macro – economic environment of the county.
• In-depth knowledge of various legislations related to the IPP Office
• Presentation skills
• Interpersonal & Networking skills
• Financial and business analytic skills
• Strong verbal and written skills
• Problem Solving skills
• Decision making skills
• Coaching and mentoring skills
• Attention to Detail

Required Personal Attributes    

• Analysis and Judgement
• Numerical Reasoning
• Assertiveness
• Excellence Orientation
• Investigative Orientation
• Customer Responsiveness
• Business Acumen
• Planning and Prioritising
• Ability to Influence
• Leadership