Senior Energy Specialist

The East Asia & Pacific (EAP) region has diverse energy requirements, including sector reform, utility restructuring, energy efficiency, renewable energy development, energy access, regional integration, etc., and a similarly diverse client base, from sophisticated middle-income countries to fragile states.  The unit’s program spans the breadth of WB instruments, including investment lending, guarantees for public-private partnerships, technical assistance, program for results, and development policy lending. The region’s energy program also has about 120 active Recipient- and Bank-executed trust funds which supplement our Bank-funded work program which has an active portfolio of about 35 IBRD/IDA projects totaling over US$5 billion. The EAP region is divided into six country management units (CMUs) with decentralized Country Directors: (i) China, Mongolia & Korea; (ii) Philippines, Malaysia and Thailand; (iii) Papua New Guinea and Pacific Islands; (iv) Indonesia and Timor Leste; (v) Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Myanmar; and (vi) Vietnam. Overall, EAP energy has a team of 32 staff, with more than 80 percent based in the field. EEX has established a core team in the Singapore Infrastructure Hub, where the energy Practice Manager for EAP is also based along with seven other EEX staff. For each country/CMU, the energy program is coordinated by a country program coordinator, who is part of the country energy team, is based in the field, and reports to the energy Practice Manager.

The position is based in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea (PNG) to support the implementation of existing projects and the design of pipeline projects in PNG, and to facilitate the WB’s energy sector engagements in PNG. The selected candidate is also expected to support energy programs in other EAP countries, and other infrastructure programs in PNG.

Duties and accountabilities:

The EAP energy unit (IEAE1) of the World Bank seeks a qualified Senior Energy Specialist, as part of the PNG-based energy team, shall work with Governments and their entities, national and international stakeholders and partners in leading/coordinating the WB’s energy program. The work entails strategic, advisory, and operational work in the energy sector. The selected candidate will lead or assist the teams in a complex sector dialogue and the management of Bank’s ongoing and pipeline lending portfolio and non-lending portfolio such as Advisory Services and Analytics (ASA) programs primarily focusing on PNG and possibly cross-supporting a few other countries in the EAP region. The successful candidate will report to the EAP Energy Practice Manager in Singapore, and work in coordination with other PNG Country Office-based staff, and the Energy Program Coordinator in Sydney, Australia.

The selected candidate will participate in overseeing the implementation and preparation of energy operations to enhance quality and accelerate operations and will play an active role in Bank’s policy dialogue with the PNG government, authorities, development partners, private sector entities, and other stakeholders in strategic energy issues and engagement of ongoing energy sector reforms. Key responsibilities of the selected candidate will include technical support to lending and non-lending programs: