UNDP Jobs - 58620- Expert to Support Bahrain’s Sustainable Energy Uni

Expert to Support Bahrain’s Sustainable Energy Unit (SEU) to Prepare the NREAP

Location :

Manama, BAHRAIN

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

02-Sep-2015

Application Deadline :

26-Aug-15 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

6 Months

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Background

The Kingdom of Bahrain is in the process of implementing a series of actions as a road map of the preparation of the National Renewable Energy Action Plan (NREAP) as part of implementation of the Pan -Arab Renewable Energy Strategy 2030 that was adopted by the Arab Economic and Social Development Summit in January 2013. The, strategy was developed to achieve the political commitment of LAS to achieve national and regional renewable energy goals.

The Energy Department of the League of Arab states in cooperation with Regional Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (RCREEE) developed a regional process “the Arab Renewable Energy Framework” (AREF) that contains guiding recommendations to achieve national renewable energy targets and the National Renewable Energy Action Plans (NREAP) adapted to Arab countries context and approved on the political level by the Arab Ministerial Council for Electricity (AMCE) in September 2014 and circulated among Arab states for adoption. The Framework was developed to ensure proper implementation of the strategy and support Arab countries in the achievement of their planned objectives .The Arab NREAP template is inspired by a similar template adopted by the European States since 2010 and describes necessary measures and steps followed by countries to meet the successful implementation of national targets. The Kingdom of Bahrain road map is based on the framework developed by RECREEE to respond to the request by the League of Arab States through its Energy Department.

On the on 26 November 2014 the Kingdom of Bahrain signed an agreement with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to establish the Sustainable Energy Unit with the key objectives of developing a cohesive and sustainable energy policy and to promote Renewable Energy, Energy Efficiency and Conservation in the country.

UNDP is committed to provide technical assistance to the Bahrain Sustainable Energy Unit to support the implementation of the road map and the preparation of the NREAP. The signing of the agreement to establish the Unit was based on a Cabinet Resolution No. 04-2238, stating of the “approval to start the implementation of the steps to establish the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Center in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)”.

The Sustainable Energy Unit will coordinate and provide technical resources and support to update and finalize the draft action plan during 2015. The Unit will prepare among many functions the National Energy Efficiency (NEEAP) and the National Renewable Energy Action Plan (NREAP) and/ or the Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs); including but not limited to Feed-in-Tariff. The Unit will present the NREAP to the Supreme Council for Energy as well as the appropriate government authority to endorse the plan before it is presented to the Cabinet for approval.

The Bahrain Sustainable Energy Unit is the national designated entity mandated to lead and promote energy efficiency practices, transfer and diffuse renewable energy technologies and draft related policies & regulatory frameworks in close coordination with stakeholders and partners in the Kingdom of Bahrain. The unit will work towards bridging the legal, institutional, and capacity gaps in order for the Bahrain energy sector to meet future challenges.

Duties and Responsibilities

Scope of Work:

The Expert will undertake the tasks and assume the responsibilities described in the attached terms of reference (Annex I). The Expert will be required to:

Support in the organization of the local consultative and disseminations workshops;
Collect information and data required in the NREAP template and in the current situation analysis as specified in the sequence of activities and responsibilities including interviews and consultation with national stakeholders.

Prepare the first working draft of the NREAP based on the collected data and analysis of the national RE situation and future perspective and regulatory and institutional framework. The prepared NREAP is structured according to the approved template by the Arab Ministerial Council for Electricity (AMCE) in September 2014. The task will include preparing scenarios and proposals of policy pathways for achieving targets and planned national goals.

This activity will include:

Analysis of national RE context and future perspectives;
Assessments of national gaps and barriers;
Proposal of improvement actions to enhance RE deployment;
Based on the collected information and national RE assessment and analysis, draft a NREAP structured according to the different chapters & articles defined in the template;
Develop a regular review and evaluation framework of the proposed NREAP.

The expert will assess the national RE situation through:

Gathering the information and data required in the NREAP template during the period 2010-2030, by sector and technology including existing and projected energy mix, relevant strategy, policy and mechanisms, laws and regulations, grid integration and administrative procedures as well as identify and list of the projected required investments for each technology;
Undertaking a comprehensive review and assessment of the current practices governing renewable energy development and participation of private investments;
Carrying out a gap analysis related to RE deployment in the country concerning required laws, obligations, support schemes or measures, administrative procedures, technical specifications, access to and operation of the grids.

Accordingly, the expert will develop a synthesis view of the expectations and scenarios on pathways for the policy framework.

Deliverables:

Inception report and methodology overview;
Summary note on first stakeholder consultations;
Gap analysis report of current situation, RE perspectives, policies and incentives for RE deployment;
Draft NREAP with draft recommendations and road map of implementation;
Summary note on second stakeholder consultations;
Synthesis and reporting of dissemination workshop;
Updated and final NREAP document based on country consultations including draft action plans to achieve national indicative targets with estimated cost and timelines.

Time frame:

The technical assistance as proposed above will be carried out by an expert closely working with the Bahrain Sustainable Energy Unit.

The duration of the assignment can be six to nine months and needs to be agreed on with Bahrain Sustainable Energy Unit.
The start of the assignment can be planned within 30 days from the recruitment of the national expert for technical assistance by UNDP.

Competencies

Fumctional Competencies:

Good understanding of overall energy situation and activities;
Good knowledge in renewable energy and its related challenges;
Track record of good working relationships with national partners;
Demonstratedknowledge in institutional, regulatory and legal frameworks for sustainable energy, including the legal drafting of policies and supporting measures, administrative procedures, etc.

Corporate Competencies:

Demonstrate integrity by modeling the UN’s values and ethical standards; and
Display cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

A University degree in engineering or related area; economics, environment, business, or similar.

Experience:

The candidate must have at least 10 years of experience in the field of, energy technologies, energy policies, energy regulations, renewable energy especially wind and solar, or other energy related areas or environmental science or public policy or management;
Experience in Energy Policy work/ Policy option formulation;
Prior experience with United Nations agencies is an advantage;
Experience in Strategic Planning;
Experience in GCC countries, Arab country is an advantage.

Languages:

Proficiency in written and spoken English;
Knowledge of Arabic an asset.

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications:

Personal CV including past experience in similar projects and at least 3 references.

Proposal:

Provide a two page max. brief on your approach to the different tasks in the scope of work, explaining why he/she are the most suitable for the work;
One pager of expected challenges in developing a NREAP;
One and a half pager listing the different initiatives and which one you think is suitable for Bahrain and why.

Please note pages more than specified will be ignored; Use Annex if needed.

Financial proposal:

The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount. The payment terms for this assignment will be monthly based on submission of a monthly progress report.

Evaluation:

The shortlisted applicants will be evaluated using Cumulative Analysis.
When using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract should be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

Responsive/compliant/acceptable; and
Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

Technical Criteria weight; 70%.
Financial Criteria weight; 30%.

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 70% would be considered for the Financial Evaluation.

Technical Evaluation (70%):

Experience related to Renewable Energy - 20;
Experience related to overall Energy sector - 15;
Experience in project management/ coordination -10;
Experience in strategic Planning - 20;
Experience in Policy work/ policy option formulation - 5.

Financial Evaluation (30%).

In this methodology, the maximum number of points assigned to the financial proposal is allocated to the lowest price proposal. All other price proposals receive points in inverse proportion.

A suggested formula is as follows:

p = y (µ/z)

Where:

p = points for the financial proposal being evaluated;
y = maximum number of points for the financial proposal;
µ = price of the lowest priced proposal;
z = price of the proposal being evaluated.

The proposal obtaining the overall highest score after adding the score of the technical proposal and the financial proposal is the proposal that offers best value for money.

According to the formula:

V = 0.3 (µ/z) + 0.7 (x/y);
V = value for money;
x = technical score of the candidate;
y = highest technical score.

While using this weighted scoring method, the award of the contract shall be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

Responsive/compliant/acceptable, and
Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

Proposal should be submitted at the following address PO Box 26814, Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain or by email to procurement.bh@undp.org no later than Wednesday 5th August, 2015.