Power Resources Specialist

Job Title: Power Resources Specialist

Salary: $90,000-$110,000 (commensurate with experience)

Location: Requires CA residency and on-site work in San Mateo. The Power Resources Specialist will be expected to travel to attend in-person meetings on a quarterly basis at the WestLight Energy office in San Mateo, CA. Other in-person meetings may be required. We regret that we are unable to sponsor Visas at this time.

POSITION SUMMARY

Concerned about sustainability and climate change? Want to apply your talents to the fast-growing, vitally important area of clean energy and do meaningful work that helps the community and the environment? WestLight Energy is a dynamic, not-for-profit governmental organization seeking a passionate professional who wants to work in a collegial, innovative, and mission-driven environment. Come grow with us as we address climate change and lead the way forward with clean energy solutions.

The Power Resources Specialist is an important member of the Power Resources team. The team has a wide range of responsibilities relating to the development and management of WestLight Energy’s electricity portfolio to serve customers, meet regulatory requirements, and achieve the agency’s goal to be 100% renewable on a 24/7 basis.

The Power Resources Specialist will report to a Manager in the Power Resources team and may support other managers and leadership at WestLight Energy.

This is an entry-level position, and we are seeking candidates who are organized, detail-oriented, and eager to learn about Community Choice Energy and the energy industry.

POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES

The Power Resources Specialist will support the Power Resources team in Settlements, Contract Administration, and Regulatory Compliance. The candidate should be highly organized; have a strong attention to detail; be able to manage their workday while participating in multiple projects; and be capable of effectively collaborating with other members of the team.

Settlements

Support the settlement process for short-term and long-term power contracts, including index-plus products, power purchase agreements, energy storage service agreements, resource adequacy products, and financial hedges. Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Communicate with power suppliers, counterparties, and contractors regarding settlement matters.
• Receive, file, and process invoices.
• Validate invoices to ensure charges and credits are accurate and consistent with contractual terms. 
  
• Determine invoice amounts and work with Accounting to manage an accurate and timely accounts payable and accounts receivable process.
• Download, organize, review and analyze operational and market data, including metered energy, market prices, capacity availability, outages, and curtailments, to support settlements and contract administration. Work with consultants and internal team members to resolve identified discrepancies.
• Support the management and tracking of Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) in WREGIS.
• Collaborate with the Market Ops and Data Teams to develop and improve tools for extracting, organizing, and analyzing operational data used in settlements.

Contract Administration

• Organize and maintain file structures and documentation for long- and short-term deals. Support the mitigation and resolution of counterparty disputes related to settlements and contract administration, including collaborating with the operations team to gather supporting documentation and working with legal counsel on contract interpretation.
• Monitor compliance with contractual terms by developing a thorough understanding of contract requirements and reviewing project operational data.
• Administer PPAs during the development phase by working with developers to monitor construction and CAISO integration progress, identifying obstacles or delays, and providing updates to internal teams for planning purposes.
• Maintain professional and collaborative working relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
• Prepare responses to ad-hoc data and information requests related to contract administration and power settlements.

Regulatory Compliance

• Prepare and submit recurring regulatory compliance reports, including semiannual Power Cost Indifference Adjustment (PCIA) data requests and annual Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) Compliance reporting.
• Identify and help resolve discrepancies in data used for regulatory reporting.
• Respond to data requests and questions from regulators and peer agencies.
• Support the Green-e certification process for our ECO100 retail product.

QUALIFICATIONS

Required Qualifications:

• BA/BS degree in economics, engineering, finance, business, environmental studies, or other related fields. Advanced degree or equivalent experience in engineering, economics, project management, environmental studies, or clean energy business is desirable.
• 0-3 years’ experience in related work.
• Skilled Excel user.
  

Required Skills:

• Thorough and detail-oriented approach to work.
• Intrinsic curiosity and motivation to understand new concepts, tackle hard problems, and ask hard questions
• Excellent time management skills, including the ability to take responsibility for independent work, as well as participate in team efforts, and adapt quickly to changing team priorities.
• Excellent verbal and written communications skills, including communicating complex topics to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Ability to exercise sound judgment, creative problem solving.

Desired Skills (Not Required), Qualifications, and Knowledge

• Familiarity with the California energy industry and electric power markets specifically, including organizations such as the CAISO, CPUC, CEC and CARB.
• Knowledge of electricity generation technologies, including carbon free electric energy, renewable energy and energy storage
• Familiarity or experience with invoicing, settlements, and contract management Familiarity with regulatory compliance