Legal Counsel - Fixed Term for 18 Months (m/w/d)

Job Description

RWE Renewables is a leading player in the global energy transition, with an international team of around 3,500 employees working together to provide electricity for a sustainable life. We currently have a total capacity of more than 9 gigawatts from existing onshore and offshore wind parks, photovoltaic plants and battery storage plus ambitious plans for continued growth to drive a net zero future for the world.

The role

As Legal Counsel within the Renewables Australia Legal Team, you will act as one of RWE Renewables' key legal advisors on matters relating to the development, financing, procurement, construction and operation of wind, solar and battery energy storage projects across Australia.

We are looking for an experienced, highly motivated and commercially minded legal counsel who is confident working across an international renewables business. You will be a member of the Australian Legal Team and will also work closely with Legal Counsel across OPEA's European markets. You will build strong relationships with the business and other support functions to deliver practical, holistic and streamlined legal support.

This role offers the opportunity to work on high-profile and complex renewable energy projects, including project financing, major procurement and construction contracting, and claims management. You will provide commercial, solution-oriented advice to RWE's Renewables business across a broad mix of development, financing, procurement, construction and operational matters.

Your primary focus will be supporting procurement activities for RWE's pre-FID portfolio and claims management across RWE's construction and operational assets. Experience in both EPC and split-scope contracting (across both OEM and BOPs) is essential, preferably in the wind, solar, and battery energy storage sectors. You will also be expected to support project financing activities, so familiarity with bankability requirements and project finance contracting is expected. Experience across the full lifecycle of renewables project development - from land access through to commercial operation - will be viewed favourably.

Procurement and construction contracting

You will:

• Draft and negotiate ECI and preferred supplier agreements, EPC, balance-of-plant contracts for wind, solar, and BESS projects (i.e., for split-scope contracting), including turbine supply agreements, civil and electrical BOP packages, and battery system supply and integration agreements, and other OEM supply agreements (transformers, inverters, panels, and others).
• Advise on procurement strategy, tender documentation, contractor selection processes and tender evaluation - working closely with procurement, technical and project management teams and providing advice on legal risks arising from procurement models.
• Draft and negotiate ancillary construction-phase agreements, including owner's engineer appointments, independent certifier agreements, grid consultant agreements, environmental and geotechnical contractors and consultant terms, met mast supplier contracts, and construction-phase insurance arrangements.
• Support the construction and other operational RWE team members to manage construction and services contracts.
• Advise on contract administration issues, including payment claims, pricing validity mechanisms, variations, programming, extensions of time, delay liquidated damages, change of law, force majeure, performance liquidated damages, work quality, defects, warranties and interface risk.
• Work with real estate, planning, environmental, engineering and other subject matter experts to ensure appropriate contractual flow-downs and risk allocation across procurement and construction contracts.
• Review major construction and procurement contracts in the context of project financing and advise on bankability risks.
• Support the contracting for services and works on RWE's operational assets - on both a 'business as usual' and planned/project basis.

Grid connection and regulatory matters

You will:

• Advise on connection works, grid connection agreements and related TNSP interface arrangements.
• Support development, construction and engineering teams on grid connection matters and Australian electricity regulatory issues, including engagement with network service providers, regulators and market operators.
• Assist with the legal review of grid-related obligations in construction, procurement and financing documents. Provide ongoing support to the operations team regarding grid-related obligations and contracts.

Claims management

You will take a lead role in the management of contractual claims across RWE Australia's construction and operational asset portfolio. This includes:

• Identifying, assessing and pursuing affirmative claims against contractors and suppliers, including delay, defects, performance shortfall, warranty, and negligence claims.
• Responding to and resolving claims brought by contractors, including extension of time claims, disruption claims and variation disputes.
• Managing dispute escalation processes under construction contracts, including expert determination, adjudication, litigation, and arbitration proceedings.
• Coordinating external counsel on litigated or arbitrated disputes and managing external legal spend.
• Developing and maintaining claims registers, evidence preservation protocols and lessons-learned processes to strengthen RWE Australia's contractual position across the portfolio.
• Advise on and support the construction team to manage security of payment claims. Co-ordinate any adjudication processes under applicable state and territory legislation.

Other legal support

You will also:

• Assist with M&A, joint venture and project financing transactions, particularly to the extent relevant to construction contracting.
• Provide general legal advice on procurement, health and safety, intellectual property, regulatory and other matters relating to the development, construction and operation of renewable energy projects.
• Support contract negotiations and contract administration, providing timely and commercial advice to help the business execute and manage a broad range of agreements, from consultancy agreements to major equipment supply contracts.
• Provide legal advice on contract administration issues and potential disputes arising under project contracts.

Assist with the negotiation and review of power purchase agreements (PPAs), LTESAs and other off-take or revenue arrangements, including analysis of risks relevant to construction and operational contracts

Your Benefits

We aim to make your time with us as rewarding as possible by fostering a supportive and inclusive environment. Alongside competitive pay and opportunities for growth, we care about your well-being and the balance between work and life. Our benefits include:

• Flexible and hybrid working, enabling a balance between remote work and in-office collaboration
• Company pension scheme to help secure your future
• Employee stock programme giving you a stake in our success
• Training and development opportunities to support your professional growth

We look forward to meeting you. Of course, you can find us on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Xing, too.

We value diversity and therefore welcome all applications - regardless of gender, disability, nationality, ethnic and social origin, religion/belief, age, sexual orientation, and identity. #inclusionmatters

RWE Renewables Europe & Australia is a leading player in the renewable energy sector with over 30 years of experience. We currently operate onshore wind farms, solar plants and battery storage systems with around 5 gigawatts of installed capacity in our core markets in Europe and Australia.

Supported by a workforce of around 2,000 employees, we continue to expand our renewable generation capacity in a value-accretive way. Our expertise spans the entire project lifecycle: we develop, plan, finance, build and operate our projects. With a strong project pipeline, we are working with communities to create a long-term value for everyone, today and for the future.