Project Manager, Dubai Carbon Center of Excellence

The Supreme Council of Energy (SCoE) of Dubai was established in 2009 to coordinate Dubai’s energy needs. Amongst other duties, the SCoE is responsible for ensuring Dubai’s supply of energy, strategic planning of the energy sector, and ensuring the environmental sustainability of energy generation and consumption. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in partnership with the SCoE, is providing technical assistance to Dubai, to assist the Emirate in decoupling economic development from greenhouse gas emissions and to access innovative sources of climate finance, including carbon credits. Acting on a decision of the Supreme Council of Energy (SCoE) of Dubai on 26 October 2009, three mainly Dubai Government-owned / majority-owned entities – the Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (DEWA), Dubai Aluminium Company (DUBAL) and the Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC), as well as a private environmental consultancy company, ISTIDAMA, jointly founded the Dubai Carbon Centre of Excellence (DCCE) in April 2011. The role of DCCE is to facilitate Dubai’s transition to a low-carbon economy and operationalise DEWA’s Strategic Plan 2010-2014. It also symbolises Dubai’s capacity to contribute to the global response to the climate change challenge. For the first 2 years of DCCE’s operations, its principal focus will be on projects, programmes and institutions based in Dubai. Thereafter, DCCE’s objective is to establish itself as a regional centre of excellence. DCCE is not a political body: its function is, rather, to operationalise according to commercial modalities Dubai Government carbon policies – and, by extension, UAE Government policies – as laid out by the SCoE, DEWA and other Dubai Government entities. DCCE’s principal business activities are structured around four revenue-generating pillars: Advisory services: assisting investors to understand the financial implications of climate change through the provision of training, carbon auditing, emissions management, project investment appraisal and policy development. Carbon asset development: assisting clients to implement carbon strategies through offsetting, carbon audits, and CDM and voluntary market project development. Asset management: establishing two funds: (i) a Clean Technology Fund to promote the migration of Dubai towards a lower-carbon economy through support to renewable energy, energy efficiency, sustainable transport, waste management, water treatment and ODS management; and (ii) a Project Finance Fund to make direct equity investments in technology companies or to provide finance through commercial partners. Trading and sourcing carbon credits: acting as a broker for DCCE’s own credits, and establishing and trading a portfolio of credits (proprietary trading). UNDP’s climate change strategy aims to assist countries to scale up mitigation and adaptation action to successfully meet the climate change challenge and to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in the context of a changing climate. Through the development of new partnerships, planning tools, public policies and financial instruments, markets will be transformed and investment catalysed in lower-carbon and climate-resilient initiatives. UNDP’s strategy consists of 6 components: Build country-level capacity to address climate change by providing a set of integrated support services to assess climate change impacts and realistic response strategies; develop and implement policies, regulatory/market-based instruments and institutional change; and access additional resources to finance solutions and make sound investment decisions. Complement policy change and capacity development efforts at the national level by facilitating action at the provincial, municipal, and community levels. Address both mitigation and adaption, recognising that the window of opportunity to help countries to adapt to climate change is as narrow as that for mitigation if we are to reach the MDGs. Diversify the funding sources that countries can access and enable them to effectively combine and sequence these different financing sources. Promote public-private partnerships at all administrative levels. Mainstream climate change into all core development areas, including energy, agriculture, health, water resources, and infrastructure, emphasising that climate change is not only an environmental issue, but a core developmental concern. Through the ‘Promoting Low-Carbon Development in Dubai’ project, UNDP is committed to working with the Supreme Council of Energy in building DCCE’s strength and capacity, to assist it in fulfilling its role in catalysing carbon finance (initially, in the form of the Clean Development Mechanism, CDM) in Dubai, and to improve sustainable development in Dubai through integrating climate change considerations into development planning and implementation processes. The project is structured according to three outputs: Output 1: Enhanced ability of DCCE and DCCE stakeholders to access global carbon markets – capacity development Output 2: Development of a CDM project pipeline – Project Design Document (PDD) development, ERPA assistance, carbon buyer identification and other project development services for a set of CDM projects originated through DCCE. A new CDM methodology will also be produced so as to open up the carbon market to additional mitigation opportunities. Output 3: Development of an Integrated Territorial Climate Plan (ITCP) for Dubai Output 1 will be delivered through a structured programme of capacity development support provided by UNDP’s global team of sectoral and thematic climate change specialists, assisted by a dedicated Project Manager who will manage the project’s day-to-day operations and who will coordinate with relevant stakeholders. Output 2 will be coordinated by UNDP’s carbon finance unit, MDG Carbon, assisted by the Project Manager and the UNDP UAE Country Office. A set of 8 CDM projects is currently at the PDD stage of development. These projects must be registered prior to the end of 2012. Outputs 1 and 2 are the immediate project priorities. Output 3 is a dormant project component, which will be activated at such time as mutually agreed by DCCE and UNDP. The Project Manager will assume management responsibility for Output 3 if and when this Output moves forward. UNDP is seeking to recruit the Project Manager for this project, under an Individual Contract (IC) modality, with an immediate (or near-immediate) commencement date. The assignment will offer the incumbent considerable exposure to climate change mitigation approaches, to carbon finance and CDM project development, to the commercial and public-sector environment of Dubai, and to the work of the United Nations Development Programme.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the direct supervision of the UNDP Country Office in Abu Dhabi, the Project Manager’s main responsibility will be to ensure the smooth day-to-day running of the UNDP-DCCE ‘Promoting Low-Carbon Development in Dubai’ project. In particular, the Project Manager will: Design a work programme, in conjunction with UNDP and DCCE, to cover the period August 2011-December 2012 so as to ensure timely and coordinated delivery of project activities (including a structured programme of capacity development, CDM project development and CDM methodology development). Output 3, the Integrated Territorial Climate Plan, may be added to the work programme at a later date. Manage the work programme to ensure the agreed milestones and timelines are adhered to. This is of particular importance in the context of the CDM project development, where the timeframes associated with CDM project registration are inflexible and extremely tight. Manage the project budget. Coordinate project stakeholders to ensure timely delivery of the work programme – this will involve (for example) liaising with UNDP staff in New York and Bratislava to arrange missions and technical support; liaising with the UNDP Country Office in Abu Dhabi on budgetary matters; interacting with CDM project developers to collect data and clarify technical issues; liaising with the CDM Designated National Authority (DNA) – the Abu Dhabi Environment Agency – and Designated Operational Entities (DOEs) during the CDM project development process; and working with DCCE staff to ensure deliverables are of high quality and tailored to DCCE’s needs. Assist, where relevant to the Project Manager’s background, with provision of training and capacity development services. Manage project outreach activities, such as representation at relevant conferences and meetings and the production of relevant publications and reports. Report on project progress and activities to UNDP, the Supreme Council of Energy and DCCE

Competencies

Ability to plan and implement project work programmes Capacity to build strong relationships with partners and clients, using interpersonal skills to network effectively Skills in managing stakeholders in a demanding and time-constrained environment Ability to react to problems and delays with practical recommendations and creative solutions Ability to produce high-quality outputs in a timely manner while understanding and anticipating evolving needs Ability to lead, manage complexity and contribute effectively to team-based activities and manage conflict and stress productively Ability to speak and make presentations in a public setting. Display cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.

Required Skills and Experience

The key attribute sought from the Project Manager is the ability to design and execute a project in the context of a tight and inflexible timescale. Thematic experience (e.g. engineering, finance, carbon finance, economics) and sectoral experience (e.g. energy, energy efficiency, heavy industry) are highly valued, but are secondary to a proven ability to manage projects involving a number of stakeholders effectively and on schedule. Education: Minimum Bachelor’s degree, and ideally a Master’s degree, in Engineering, Energy, Environmental Science, Finance, Economics or a related field. Language: Fluency in English (written and spoken) required. Fluency in Arabic (written and spoken) preferred. Information technology: Ability to use MS Office applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook). Experience: Minimum 7 years of work experience, including a substantial element of project management. Relevant professional experience in the energy or industrial sectors, and prior experience of the Clean Development Mechanism or other carbon finance instruments, are highly valued. Prior experience with the UN or other international organisations is valued but not essential.

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence.

Project Manager, Dubai Carbon Center of Excellence