Project Development Lead (m/w/d)

Job Description

Every day, we work together for what matters - bold, swift, and equitable climate action.

About the Role

Ready to make a real impact on climate change in Europe? We're a mission-driven company that's been a leader in the renewable energy and climate solutions space for over two decades, committed to empowering organizations to create a decarbonized and prosperous future. We are a certified B Corporation and actively prioritize people and the planet. We're looking for a Project Development Lead to join our team and help us establish ourselves as a leading authority in agricultural emission reductions within Europe. This is a unique opportunity to leverage your expertise in European carbon and environmental commodity markets to originate, develop, and manage agricultural emission reduction projects. You'll be at the forefront of our business, working in partnership with project operations, business development, and commercial teams, to build a new offering that seeks to be a leader in scope 3 emission reductions for our customers. If you're a motivated and experienced professional with a passion for environmental sustainability, this role offers the chance to apply your skills in a dynamic and growing field, working with a team dedicated to creating a more sustainable future.

This is a permanent, full-time role reporting to the Senior Project Development Manager. This position offers a flexible, voluntary hybrid working arrangement and is ideally suited for candidates based within commuting distance of our offices in Oslo, Norway or Amsterdam, the Netherlands. We also welcome applications from exceptional candidates located in other European countries, including the UK, Italy, Hungary, and Spain.

Please Note: 3Degrees does not provide sponsorship and/or relocation assistance for non-nationals for any of our roles. A pre-existing right-to-work status or full work visa for the locations listed above is therefore a prerequisite to be considered for this position.

What You'll Do

As a Project Development Lead, you'll be instrumental in expanding our portfolio of agricultural emission reduction projects in Europe. Your primary responsibilities will include:

• Project Origination and Development: Lead the origination, development, and management of agricultural emission reduction project opportunities from initial concept to a final deal, with a specific focus on the European market.
• Strategic Planning: Develop a comprehensive origination, product, and sales strategy in collaboration with team leadership to identify and quickly determine which projects offer strategic alignment with our business, expertise, and customer needs in Europe.
• Agreement Structuring: Structure and negotiate bespoke investment, pre-purchase, offtake, and revenue share agreements tailored to the specific needs of counterparties and our company, while managing financial risk and return.
• Sales Enablement: Coordinate with and empower sales teams with product and project resources to support account targeting and development.
• Due Diligence: Lead comprehensive due diligence on project risks, including program/protocol eligibility, credit delivery, operational risk, costs, and counterparty credit, and historic project performance.
• Customer Consulting: Conduct and present research and analysis for strategic consulting projects, supporting our customers in the development of new carbon projects.
• Team Collaboration: Provide support to our Project Operations team with data collection and monitoring, reporting, and verification support where needed once projects have been originated and launched.
• Industry Representation: Act as a representative for our company at conferences and webinars in Europe, delivering presentations and educating potential partners on how projects can benefit from carbon and clean fuel standard markets.
• Market Insights: Provide internal market insights on developments within Europe, including new opportunities, obstacles, and general trends to senior leadership and other internal teams.

About You

You are a motivated, mission-driven environmental professional with a solid understanding of European carbon and agricultural environmental commodity markets, and a solid understanding of how new projects are developed and financed. You have a proven track record of developing and financing new projects and are adept at building relationships and negotiating complex agreements. You bring a deep knowledge of corporate climate strategy and agricultural supply chains, which you apply to interpret regulatory requirements and qualify projects for environmental credit generation.

• 5+ years of experience with environmental credit markets, project development, and/or project finance, with a strong focus on the European context.
• Direct experience with animal agriculture, and/or biomethane emission reduction projects.
• A track record of negotiating unique offtake, pre-purchase, and/or financing agreements.
• Exceptional financial modeling, analysis, and structuring skills.
• Experience performing due diligence and presenting opportunities for investment to internal stakeholders.
• Ability to interpret and apply European regulatory or protocol requirements to qualify and quantify environmental credit generation.
• You bring a strong understanding of technical and quantitative details.
• Established presence and strong relationships within the community of project originators, developers, policymakers, and industry leaders in the agricultural sector.
• Demonstrated ability to manage complex and long deal processes spanning external business counterparts and internal stakeholders.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to clearly articulate complex information to various audiences.
• Experience selling into Enterprise food and beverage corporations is a plus.

How We Define Success

Within the first 30 days

• Gain a solid understanding of the 3Degrees project development process, available tools, and resources, and begin to independently work on new projects.
• Develop strong relationships with key internal stakeholders to ensure effective collaboration across teams.
• Establish a foundational understanding of the team's strategic priorities and how the role contributes to the company's overall goals.
• Begin to familiarize yourself with the team structure, systems, processes, and tools used for project management and organization.

Within the first 90 days

• Demonstrate the ability to independently manage origination discussions with external carbon and agricultural project opportunities.
• Articulate our business proposition and strengths to prospects, and identify strategic opportunities for growth.
• Originate three promising project opportunities for our agricultural carbon business, showcasing progress towards your annual goals.
• Begin to contribute meaningfully to cross-functional projects, leveraging your understanding of the business and processes.

Within the first 6 months

• Submit three term sheets to promising projects, and enter into partnership discussions with at least one company to develop a strategic multi-project partnership on a clear path to achieving your annual value creation goal.
• Develop a perspective on the EU market and codify it in a strategic organizational plan in coordination with agSCR leadership.
• Consistently manage all aspects of the "What You'll Do" section, contributing independently to key deliverables and demonstrating a firm grasp of the skills acquired.

Within 1 year

• Become a key contributor to the origination, structuring, and due diligence of projects that will reduce over 500,000 mtCO2e, serving as the main point of contact for a significant portion of these projects.
• Achieve your personal origination value creation goal for the year.
• Serve as a subject matter expert for EU agricultural projects, effectively and comfortably managing introductory meetings and discerning which opportunities to pursue.
• Play a key role in helping the team meet department and company goals by executing on all items in the "What You'll Do" section and helping to shape the team's strategic direction.

Compensation & Benefits

Compensation We offer a competitive salary package in line with the candidates' experience, qualifications and industry standards, ensuring that your hard work and contributions are duly recognized and rewarded.

Benefits Our global company offers a range of benefits that may vary depending on your country of residence. We offer all benefits required or customary in your country, as well as additional benefits including: flexible paid time off, a yearly wellness stipend and learning and development stipend. This role may be eligible for reimbursements such as broadband and mobile phone expenses. We have a company profit-sharing scheme, along with other localized benefits tailored to your specific country.

Supplemental Pay This position may be eligible to participate in discretionary bonus programs based on personal, department and company goals.

(This compensation and benefits information is based on 3Degrees' good faith estimate as of the date of publication and may be modified in the future)

Our Commitment to Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity

3Degrees is an equal-opportunity employer. We are committed to creating an inclusive environment where different perspectives contribute to better solutions. 3Degrees welcomes people regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, gender identity or gender expression, age, sex, pregnancy, marital status, ancestry, disability, military or veteran status, sexual orientation, genetic information, or any other category protected by law.