Principal – Strategy & Commercial

Principal, Strategy & Commercial – Renewable Energy Projects

• Help drive our business towards a greener future

• Support development of renewable energy opportunities around the world

• Based in London, Brisbane, Salt Lake City or Montreal

As one of the world’s largest industrial users of energy, Rio Tinto has a unique challenge in the energy transition. The Renewable Energy Projects (REP) team is part of the Rio Tinto Energy & Climate (RTEC) group led by the Chief Decarbonisation Officer. The team leads the delivery and development of renewable energy across Rio Tinto global portfolio by working collaboratively across the business to deliver on our climate commitments while ensuring our business is well positioned for the future low-carbon economy.

About the role

We are looking for a collaborative and driven Principal ,Strategy & Commercial to drive strategic initiatives across the REP portfolio and ensure the program aligns with RTEC and Rio Tinto’s asset strategic priorities. The program includes the identification, study and integration of a portfolio of projects for renewable energy generation, energy storage systems, substations and transmission infrastructure. 

We are an open, connected international team of technical specialists using some of the most exciting data and tools on the planet. We are the world leader in automation and smart mining.

We have technical development programmes that are industry-leading and recognise the unique nature of your role. These provide opportunities to grow your career through a dedicated technical path while being rewarded for your unique skills.

Reporting to the Manager, Strategy & Partnerships and working as part of a dynamic and exciting team that has a global remit, you will:

• Support the development of asset and group level strategies that provide the framework to advance renewable energy projects across the portfolio

• Shape and guide aspects of external engagement strategies and integrating stakeholder considerations into the renewable energy development pathway.

• Provide commercial and financial expertise in project and portfolio valuations, including financial modelling, deal structuring, debt financing, value optimisation and investment approaches

• Assess individual projects to ensure overall alignment to the strategic objectives and provide support in the internal approval process.

• Program manage cross-functional teams to bridge gaps between different departments and promote a cohesive strategy.

• Keep abreast of evolving energy policies, market trends, and regulatory requirements that could impact renewable energy project development and financing.

• Conduct market intelligence to identify potential partners, emerging technologies, and new business models.

• build and maintain strong relationships with internal stakeholders to enhance collaboration, drive alignment and ensure successful delivery of critical REP projects and initiatives

What you’ll bring

• Commercially minded and a strategic thinker with strong interpersonal skills and an ability to understand technical and stakeholder issues including solutions outside of your field of expertise.

• Comfortable leading and facilitation project engagements and contract negotiations

• Clear and concise communication skills with the ability to build and maintain effective relationships across all levels of the business and influence multiple stakeholders.

• You will be a curious and creative thinker who is passionate about problem solving, risk-based decision-making and delivering innovative optimised solutions.

• Relevant experience in strategy development, business development, business analysis, commercial or similar disciplines.

• Leadership Skills and Team Development: Ability to drive alignment and motivate cross-functional teams towards common goals.

• Openness to travel and working across multiple time zones

Technical Understanding of Energy Systems: While not expected to be a technical expert, having a solid grasp of the principles behind energy generation, storage technologies, grid integration, and transmission infrastructure will be valuable.

What we offer

Be recognised for your contribution, your thinking and your hard work, and go home knowing you’ve helped the world progress.

• A work environment where safety is always the number one priority

• A culture that is supportive of flexible working options

• A permanent position working directly for Rio Tinto

• A competitive base salary reflective of your skills and experience with annual incentive program

• Comprehensive medical benefits including subsidised private health insurance for employees and immediate family

• Attractive share ownership plan

• Company provided insurance cover

• Extensive salary sacrifice & salary packaging options

• Career development & education assistance to further your technical or leadership ambitions

• Ongoing access to family-friendly health and medical wellbeing support

• Leave for all of life’s reasons (vacation/annual, paid parental, sick leave)

• Exclusive employee discounts (banking, accommodation, cars, retail and more)

• Possible domestic relocation assistance

Where you’ll be working

This role is for applicants residing in or willing to permanently relocate to London, Brisbane, Salt Lake City or Montreal.

Applications close on Friday the 29th of November 2024 (Rio Tinto reserves the right to remove advertised roles prior to this date)

About Rio Tinto

Rio Tinto is a leading global mining and materials company. We operate in 35 countries where we produce iron ore, copper, aluminium, critical minerals, and other materials needed for the global energy transition and for people, communities, and nations to thrive.

We have been mining for 150 years and operate with knowledge built up across generations and continents. Our purpose is finding better ways to provide the materials the world needs – striving for innovation and continuous improvement to produce materials with low emissions and to the right environmental, social and governance standards. But we can’t do it on our own, so we’re focused on creating partnerships to solve problems, create win-win situations and meet opportunities.

Every Voice Matters

At Rio Tinto, we particularly welcome and encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, women, the LGBTI+ community, mature workers, people with disabilities and people from different cultural backgrounds.

We are committed to an inclusive environment where people feel comfortable to be themselves. We want our people to feel that all voices are heard, all cultures respected and that a variety of perspectives are not only welcome – they are essential to our success. We treat each other fairly and with dignity regardless of race, gender, nationality, ethnic origin, religion, age, sexual orientation or anything else that makes us different.