Solar Operations Assistant _Cape Town

The Operations Assistant reports to the Operations Manager within the O&M Solar department. The role provides technical, project coordination, analytical, and execution support across six operational utility-scale Solar PV plants, as well as Business Development (BD) projects in the organisation's pipeline that require O&M Solar input. The position acts as a central coordination and follow-up resource to help the Operations Manager drive safe, compliant, reliable and cost-effective plant operations; maintenance execution; fleet performance; technical projects; procurement and contract actions; project integration; and timely management reporting.

The role works across Plant Managers, Technical Support, HSEQ, Engineering & Construction, Project Management, Procurement, Planning & Control, Finance, Legal, global functions, OEMs and contractors. It is an individual contributor role that supports the Operations Manager and plant teams without displacing the accountability of the relevant Power Plant Manager or the Operations Manager's approval authority .

What you will do:

HSEQ, regulatory and technical compliance. Support the Operations Manager and Power Plant Managers in driving HSEQ requirements, contractor compliance, risk controls, audit actions, incident follow-up and closure of corrective actions. Maintain a consolidated portfolio compliance tracker and coordinate evidence, actions, and due dates for GCC, DoL, NERSA, Grid Code, statutory inspections, permits, licences, and other applicable operational requirements.

· Portfolio execution, action tracking and stakeholder coordination . Maintain and drive the Operations Manager's cross-plant action register and other delegated portfolio trackers; coordinate meetings and technical workshops; monitor commitments, dependencies and due dates; follow up with responsible parties; identify constraints; and escalate overdue, high-risk or decision-critical matters for management intervention.

· Operational performance, reliability and management reporting . Consolidate and analyse plant production, availability, reliability, loss, curtailment, fault and downtime information; identify deviations, recurring issues and performance trends; support recovery and improvement plans; and prepare accurate weekly, monthly and ad-hoc dashboards, presentations and management packs for local and global decision-making.

· Maintenance execution, strategy and SAP PM . Support fleet-wide preventive and corrective maintenance execution by monitoring notifications, work orders, planned maintenance completion, backlog, overdue activities and recurring defects in SAP PM or the applicable CMMS. Assist with the development, review and standardisation of maintenance plans, task lists, work schedules, inspection routines and maintenance frequencies based on OEM requirements, statutory obligations, failure history and operational experience.

· Technical troubleshooting, RCA and fleet improvement projects . Support structured troubleshooting, Root Cause Analysis (RCA), FMECA/failure reviews and technical investigations for significant or recurring equipment failures. Track corrective and preventive actions to verify close-out and coordinate assigned fleet improvement projects, retrofits, equipment replacements, upgrades and modifications from scope definition through planning, execution, testing, handover and close-out.

· Documentation standardisation and continuous improvement. Draft, review and coordinate technical specifications, scopes of work, bills of quantities, work instructions, operating procedures, technical evaluations and contractor deliverables. Develop and maintain templates, trackers, fleet standards and lessons-learned registers that improve execution discipline, data quality, reliability and operational efficiency across the Solar portfolio.

· Commercial execution, procurement, contracts and cost control. Coordinate delegated procurement and contract actions, including quotation follow-up, technical bid reviews, purchase requisitions, WBS/budget support, micro-contract documentation, supplier mobilisation, deliverables and close-out. Track OPEX/CAPEX requirements, commitments, forecasts, actual spend and variances, and monitor contractor and supplier performance against HSEQ, technical, schedule, quality and commercial requirements. Approval and sign-off remain with the authorised role.

· Warranty, OEM, insurance and critical-equipment recovery. Support the tracking and resolution of warranty claims, OEM repairs, insurance-related technical actions and critical-equipment recovery, including evidence gathering, logistics, repair status, stakeholder follow-up and closure documentation.

· Spares and inventory management . Support portfolio inventory control by monitoring critical spares, stock levels, stock audits, inter-plant transfers, repairable spares, obsolete stock and replenishment requirements, with focus on equipment availability, risk reduction and working-capital discipline.

· Business Development, project integration and operational readiness. Provide O&M input across all BD projects requiring Solar Operations support, from feasibility, due diligence and design review through commissioning and handover. Support operability and maintainability reviews, O&M assumptions, maintenance strategy, staffing inputs, spares philosophy, service-contract requirements, lifecycle considerations, site assessments and technical risks. Coordinate readiness reviews, punch-list close-out, as-built documentation, O&M manuals, training, warranties, spares, asset data, SAP/CMMS requirements, acceptance testing, commissioning participation and capture of lessons learned before transfer to operations.

· Facilities and Digital Solutions coordination. Maintain a consolidated tracker of Facilities and Digital Solutions issues affecting the Solar portfolio and BD projects, including site infrastructure, utilities and shared facilities, communications/connectivity, IT/OT interfaces, digital platforms and other cross-functional dependencies. Coordinate follow-up with the responsible functions, monitor actions and target dates, and escalate overdue, high-risk or business-critical matters to the Operations Manager and the relevant functional Heads for intervention and resolution.

· Operational support during critical events. Provide coordination and technical support during major plant failures, emergencies, high-impact outages or urgent operational events when delegated by the Operations Manager, including information gathering, escalation, recovery tracking, stakeholder coordination and reporting.

Who you are:

• Bachelor of Science or equivalent technical qualification.

• 8+ years in technical roles and experience in renewable energy

• Detailed knowledge of the renewable and energy generation business

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills

• Strong initiative and drive for high achievement and continuous improvement

• Detailed knowledge and understanding of budgeting and finances

• Personnel management skills

• Change management Skills

• Time management skills

• Technical leadership capability.
• Ability and willingness to travel up to 40% of the time to other operational sites within Sub-Saharan Africa as needed, with occasional international travels.

What we search for in you:

· Demonstrated proven track record of end-to-end project delivery experience from feasibility through procurement, execution, and project close-out, including disposal of assets.

· Proficiency in preparing feasibility studies, cost–benefit analyses, and business cases to support investment and board approvals.

· First-hand experience with CAPEX and OPEX budgeting, cost tracking, and financial control during project execution.

· Skilled in cash flow, cost-control and budget management.

· Experience implementing and mobilising technical and maintenance contracts, including contractor performance monitoring.

· Experience managing EPC contractors, OEMs, consultants, and service providers in regulated environments.

· Conversant with electrical power systems and utility-scale renewable energy technologies to support technical decision-making.

· Strong coordination of multidisciplinary stakeholders across Engineering, O&M, Finance, Procurement, and HSEQ.

· Experience supporting governance, compliance, and reporting requirements within large organisation.

· Advanced Knowledge of MS-Office, Outlook, Excel, MS Project and SAP.

What we offer : Permanent Employment in Cape Town
You can apply until : 12 October 2026
Who we are:
Enel Green Power is part of Enel’s Group, and manages all the generation from renewable sources in Enel’s world countries. Our pillars are sustainability and innovation. We want to build a new way of living energy, creating sustainable development and making clean energy accessible to all. A world leader in clean energy, with a total capacity of more than 54 GW and a generation mix that includes wind, solar, geothermal, and hydroelectric power, as well as energy storage facilities, Enel Green Power is at the forefront of integrating innovative technologies into renewable energy plants.
Innovation, Trust, Proactivity and Responsibility are the core values of our Organization. We are always looking for different perspectives, ideas and points of view. Each person is important to us, independently from their gender, age, nationality, ability or any other form of diversity or specificity. We are a people focused Company and we work to empower all our colleagues through development programs and lifelong learning.
We promote work flexibility recognizing the importance of well-being and work-life balance. Find out more information on our website: www.enelgreenpower.com (http://www.enelgreenpower.com/) http://www.enelgreenpower.com