Energy Consultant

Salary
Graduate: £16,000 - £20,000
Employee with 10-15 years in the role: £22,000 - £35,000
Senior employee: £40,000 - £90,000

Main Employers

• Energy agencies
• Consultancies
• Utility companies

Job Profile
Energy consultancies specialise in the procurement of electricity and gas and provide a range of energy management services. Their client portfolio includes companies representing every major sector of UK industry, a number of which are FTSE 100 organisations. Energy Consultants provide a tendering and negotiating service, ongoing account management and energy management evaluations.

Role and Responsibilities
Jobs will vary according to each employer; however you could expect to be involved in:

• Promoting energy solutions to clients to reduce energy consumption in buildings and to grow revenue at profitable margins
• Conducting energy audits and detailed surveys
• Advising clients on the Climate Change Negotiated Agreements
• Devising and delivering a variety of energy related training programmes
• Researching current and future energy trends
• Undertaking commercial negotiations with customers

Qualifications
Relevant further education subjects include: Applied Chemistry; Building and Construction; Business Studies; Chemistry; Energy; Engineering; Environmental Health; Environmental Science; Geology; Physics; Planning; Surveying; Sustainable Energy.

An HND in Business Studies, Engineering or Environmental Studies can also be a route in. Although a postgraduate qualification is not expected, it is desirable. This is especially useful if it offers a work placement and choosing a dissertation that is linked to an employer can be another useful way of building on experience and contacts.

In addition to academic qualifications, membership of a professional body such as the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM) is useful. CIWEM provides training, debating, networking and socialising opportunities, and offers a student membership scheme which can provide useful contacts for the future.

Career Development
Energy management has become a key focus for UK industry, with increasingly volatile electricity and gas markets forcing prices up, and new legislation. As the sector is driven by the environmental agenda, companies need expert advice on the future. The larger energy companies employ environmental experts at a senior management level, often from external consultancies that tackle specific issues.

Those working for private companies often specialise in both environment and energy at an early stage. Others join companies with a higher degree in a relevant specialism to work directly on a specific issue. Some of the larger energy companies offer graduate programmes. The larger environmental consultancies recruit at all levels, including graduates.

There are a number of NGOs that deal with environmental issues in the energy sector, including charitable bodies promoting energy efficiency and renewable energy sources. Environmental specialists in these organisations tend to have many years of experience but there are occasional openings for less experienced individuals.

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