Renewables and Strategic Modelling Analysts

at  Department for Energy Security Net Zero

JOB SUMMARY

Do you want a career where you can make a real difference? Do you want to work at the forefront of current policy making decisions? Do you want to have an impact on the UK and beyond? If yes, then a career at the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) could be for you.
Here at DESNZ we are delivering our mission to make the UK a clean energy superpower, with clean electricity by 2030 and accelerating the UK’s journey to net zero. Our work is helping ensure clean energy for all, keep bills down and seize the opportunities to lead the world in new green industries, taking back control of our energy with Great British Energy and encouraging greater energy efficiency across the UK. The work of the department has never been more timely or relevant, and by joining us you will be part of making that difference.
Our work is varied, interesting and most importantly it’s impactful. Our DESNZ Values are interwoven into everything we do; we are bold, we are collaborative, we are inclusive, and we learn. As a department we are committed to these values to build a culture where everyone can thrive
We offer great working benefits including a world-class pension, flexible working options and a career where your learning and development is taken seriously. We are enormously proud to be a Disability Confident Leader employer. We support candidates with adjustments throughout our recruitment process. Information about disability confidence and just some examples of the adjustments that you can request can be found in the reasonable adjustment section below.
The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service D&I Strategy.

JOB DESCRIPTION

Do you have good analytical skills?
Are decarbonising current and future sources of electricity important to you?
And, would you like to use and develop your talent on some of the highest profile and crucial issues facing our nation?
We are looking for 2 analysts to join the Energy Infrastructure and Markets Analysis (EIMA) Team. Analysis is a vital input for Government decisions and our work helps to provide the insights needed to tackle the challenges of meeting our Net Zero ambitions in our electricity sector. Power drives the economy (literally).
Keeping the lights on at reasonable cost for every citizen while reducing emissions is our goal.
Role 1 - Renewable Electricity Analyst:
This role is in the Renewables Electricity Analysis team which sits within EIMA. The post holder will work closely with the Renewable Electricity Directorate, whose mission is to create a policy environment to accelerate renewable deployment whilst delivering value for money for consumers and creating sustainable UK industries.
The post holder will be leading a number of workstreams focusing on short-term (~next 5-years) renewables support schemes and their strategic objectives. The area is fast paced, and priorities are constantly evolving given very dynamic energy markets.
Some examples of the work could include:
Independently leading analytical projects to understand policy changes, through various models analytically evaluating impacts on GB energy consumers and renewables supply chains, conduction value for money analyses, assessing impacts on emissions and evaluating the unintended consequences that policies might give rise to.
Working closely with policy colleagues and developing a number of products (e.g. presentations and papers) for senior boards.
Working with a variety of external stakeholders (e.g., Ofgem, National Grid ESO and industry representatives) to assess and appraise policy implications and consequences.
Role 2 - Generation Costs Analyst:
This role is in the Strategy and Cross-Cutting team, a multi-disciplinary team involved in wide-ranging analysis, research and modelling focused helping inform some of the Government’s top priorities such as the 2030 Clean Power Mission. This role also involves working closely in partnership with policy teams and analysts across Government.
The role involves leading research and analysis to update cost and technological assumptions across all power technologies, involving collaborating with teams across EIMA and beyond. This work feeds into the Department’s power sector modelling, is a critical input for Renewable Auction parameters and supports analysis and business cases across power technologies. You will be responsible for high-priority work with considerable internal, external and frequent Ministerial interest, that ranges from managing external research contracts to leading publications to disseminating results and implications to analyst and policy customers.
The Generation Costs team is responsible for the Department’s high profile Generation Costs Report. The post holder will lead/co-lead on both research and publications from the start. With such varied work, there is some flexibility to match interests, whether coding the Generation Costs Dashboard to new analysis supporting the next publication to leading on discussion with policy stakeholders.

SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

Candidates will have:
Strong verbal and written communication skills. Able to present their analysis in a clear and compelling way to technical and non-technical audiences.
Critical and creative thinking skills. Able to identify and apply innovative approaches and techniques for analysing evidence and addressing any gaps. Comfortable working with quantitative and qualitative evidence.
Problem-solving skills. Able to identify efficient and effective solutions to exploit opportunities and address problems.
Strong team working, management and interpersonal skills. Able to build trusting and credible relationships with peers, senior colleagues and stakeholders to collaborate on projects and decision-making.
Experience working on or leading multiple priorities simultaneously, delivering at pace and maintaining a high standard of analysis.
Enthusiasm for our work. Being willing to embrace new opportunities and have the drive to learn new skills.
Good IT skills and numerate. Willing to learn new software and systems to gain new insights. Excel skills are needed for both roles, with coding skills desirable - where necessary, training can be provided.
The post holder will have plenty of L&D opportunities to build strong understanding of energy markets and a range of renewables technologies, technical skills and wider skills through in-house and external training.
You must be a full member of one of the analytical professions Government Social Research Service (GSR), Government Statistical Group (GSG) and Government Operational Research Service (GORS) or, you must be able to demonstrate that you satisfy the eligibility criteria and have the competence at the required grade (HEO) for one of the professional bodies. Links are provided to the relevant professions below.
Please provide details within your application as to which analytical professional you are a member of or which one you would like to apply under.
Government Operational Research Service
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/gors-professional-behaviours
Government Statistical Group
https://gss.civilservice.gov.uk/policy-store/competency-framework-for-the-government-statistician-group-gsg/
Government Social Research Service
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/the-government-social-research-competency-framework
To join one of these professions, you’ll need as a minimum to meet one of the following qualification standards:
Operational Researcher:
You must possess a 2:1 or higher numerate degree, or a 2:2 with relevant work experience or postgraduate qualification.
Highly numerate degrees include: Astrophysics, Data Science, Decision Science, Econometrics, Engineering, Mathematics, Operational Research, Physics and Statistics.
Other numerate degrees, such as Accounting, Biology, Business, Chemistry, Economics, Finance, Geography, IT, Management, Management Science, Psychology, Sociology, Social Sciences and Systems Science, may be accepted if 50% or more of the modules are considered highly numerate.
Statistician:
+ A first- or second-class honours degree in a numerate subject (2:1 minimum for Assistant Statistician and 2:2 minimum for Statistical Officer) containing at least 25% taught statistical content (e.g., Statistics, Mathematics, Economics, Sciences, Business Studies, Psychology, Geography or similar)
+ A higher degree, e.g., a MSc or PhD, in a subject containing formal statistical training (e.g., Statistics, Mathematics, Economics, Sciences, Business Studies, Psychology, Geography or similar)
+ Have achieved or on track to achieve a level 4 apprenticeship including at least 2 years in a statistical/data analysis field in government and are able to demonstrate continuous professional development in statistics/data analysis.
+ Have worked in a statistical or data science field for a minimum of two years and are able to demonstrate Continuous Professional Development (via a logbook) in applying statistics or data science at the same level as a foundation degree or Higher National Diploma (level five), which demonstrates the expected skills as outlined in the GSG Competency framework.
Social Researcher:

Hold a minimum of 2:2 in a social science related degree (undergraduate or postgraduate), which must contain a minimum of 30% in social research methods, covering all the criteria outlined below (it is not sufficient to hold the majority in one area – coverage across all areas is required):

• Qualitative methods, including research design, data collection (i.e., interviewing, focus groups, ethnographic), data analysis (e.g., thematic analysis)
• Systematic/literature reviews
• Quantitative methods, including research design, data collection (i.e., questionnaire design, sampling, weighting), data analysis (e.g., statistical analysis)
• Interpretation of data (qual & quan), presentation of results, provision of recommendations/ conclusions
• Study design, hypothesis formation, testing and evaluation
• Application of ethics to research

It is the responsibility of the applicant to demonstrate these criteria clearly on application.
Alternatively, you must hold an undergraduate degree at a minimum of 2:2, in any subject, or a degree equivalent (e.g., an advanced Certificate or Diploma from MRS), plus have at least 4 years’ social research practice experience. Social research practice experience consists of experience working in a research agency, market research agency or specialist research team. To enter the GSR through this route you must make explicit the breadth and depth of your research experience and skills, which must include quantitative research methods and three of the following: systematic/literature reviews; qualitative methods; interpretation of data and presentation of results; study design, hypothesis testing and application of ethics to research.
Apprentices:
Level 6 apprentices are not eligible for this role, but we welcome applications from Level 7 apprentices on the Economics Master’s Apprenticeship Programme (EMAP).

TECHNICAL SKILLS

We’ll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• GORS: Knowledge and Application of OR Skills and Techniques, GSG: Data Analysis, GSR: GSR Technical Skills

Benefits
Alongside your salary of £33,635, Department for Energy Security & Net Zero contributes £9,744 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero offers a competitive mix of benefits including:

• A culture of flexible working, such as job sharing, homeworking and compressed hours.
• Automatic enrolment into the Civil Service Pension Scheme, with an employer contribution of 28.97%.
• A minimum of 25 days of paid annual leave, increasing by 1 day per year up to a maximum of 30.
• An extensive range of learning & professional development opportunities, which all staff are actively encouraged to pursue.
• Access to a range of retail, travel and lifestyle employee discounts.
• A hybrid office/home based working model where staff will spend a norm of 40-60% of their time in the office (minimum of 40%) over a month with flex dependent on balancing business and individual need.
• This role attracts an analyst pay enhancement (in addition to basic pay) of £3,500 standard or £5,000 for those with a Master’s Degree with relevant HoP approval.

NATIONALITY REQUIREMENTS

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

With posts across two different sub-teams within the Energy Infrastructure and Markets Analysis team on offer, roles and responsibilities will vary depending on which team you work in, your own skills and any stated preferences.
The area is fast paced, and priorities are constantly evolving given very dynamic energy markets. We work closely with the policy officials to help inform decisions about the power sector, which will involve:
Collaborating with policy and analytical teams to understand the systems that are at work in the area you are working on.

Gathering, analysing and interpreting information to inform policy making. This could involve

• Designing and commissioning insightful research to provide new insights and grow understanding,
• Modelling to develop insights into the energy system,
• Coding dashboards to disseminate analysis effectively
• Developing statistics and performance measures,
• Evaluating the impact of government policies and,
• Analysis to support key strategic priorities.

Communicating your work to share your insights with your colleagues, senior officials and stakeholders.