NSTA 448 - Senior Policy Advisor - Carbon Storage

About the team

The policy and strategy team helps ensure the NSTA speaks with one voice and is joined up, by developing cross-cutting policy positions and helping to set and deliver strategic direction. The team’s work is organised around three areas: carbon storage, energy transition, and government and regulatory affairs.

Team members have defined roles and areas of responsibility, and may also act as a flexible resource for the rest of the NSTA on specific cross-cutting, strategic projects.

Brief Overview of Role

This is an exciting opportunity for a high-calibre, experienced G7/G7 equivalent to step into a stretching policy role with responsibility for driving and coordinating progress on high-profile carbon storage policy efforts for the NSTA. As the licensing and permitting authority for carbon storage in the UK, the pace and volume of the NSTA’s work on these areas have increased and this post is integral to our work, internally and with government and industry, to help achieve the government’s CCUS vision. The post will play a key role in developing and implementing the evolving policy and regulatory framework for carbon storage in the UK, working closely with DESNZ and collaborating closely with other regulators to enable streamlined regulatory interfaces. The postholder will play a key role in coordinating, shaping and driving various carbon storage initiatives, leading on specific policy areas and projects while ensuring policy analysis and input into a broad range of workstreams.

This is a senior post within the Policy and Strategy team, which sits in the Strategy Directorate. The team has a unique remit in terms of the cross-cutting nature of its work and the view it takes across the whole of the NSTA, as well as leading and coordinating many aspects of its net zero work. This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced senior policy advisor to use their policy development, strategy and delivery skills in an industry-facing environment requiring commercial sensibility alongside experience of working within or at the interface of Whitehall and Parliament. The post reports to and works closely with the Head of Policy and Strategy, and is an opportunity to work in a fast-paced, results-focused organisation that is diverse, modern and forward thinking, and which is attractive and competitive in terms of reward and flexibility.

Detailed job description and key responsibilities

This is a key senior policy advisor post to lead overall carbon storage policy coordination for the NSTA, integral to ensuring internal join-up across the range of CCS activity, and externally by leading the relationship with government/regulators on cross-cutting CCS policy and regulatory matters. The post holder also leads on various specific CCS-related policy and legislative projects and initiatives.

Exact responsibilities are dependent on timing and will be informed by NSTA priorities to best advance objectives in relation to carbon storage and any wider objectives.

All recruitment is undertaken on a flexible basis, and the policy and strategy team works in an agile way to deliver agreed priorities, though initial responsibilities are expected to include: 

• Lead internal NSTA carbon storage policy coordination to enable effective and strategic information exchange, escalation, and decision-making as appropriate, including through running and chairing internal weekly and monthly NSTA coordination fora, and producing high quality cross-cutting briefing
• Lead on maintaining effective external relationships, with CCS teams in DESNZ, regulators, EU commission, CCSA, and others as required, to ensure NSTA objectives and insights can be reflected in evolving CCS policy and regulatory arrangements and relevant initiatives. This includes representing NSTA for example in the DESNZ-chaired inter-regulator CCS forum, CCS/offshore wind co-location forum, EU ‘Zero Emissions Parliament’ Policy Working Group
• Lead NSTA policy input on future carbon storage legislation needs, within the wider NSTA context and priorities, including driving work to identify and prioritise potential measures to support delivery of strategic objectives and improve/streamline the regulatory regime, liaising with DESNZ on legislative opportunities and requirements
• Lead on other CCS policy projects and provide policy input as required to ensure NSTA readiness as permitted projects move to first injection and for longer term arrangements, including for example policy input in relation to data sharing, future carbon storage licensing activity, and storage appraisal opportunities
• More broadly, the role will also provide the opportunity for:
  • Leading complex policy and strategy projects and briefing the NSTA Leadership Team on high-profile issues
  • Providing strategic and policy input to projects across the NSTA, ensuring any narrative is consistent with policy position, legal obligations and wider government objectives
  • Acting as interface between NSTA directorates and the central government shareholder department – DESNZ – on relevant dossiers
  • Building excellent working relationships with government, regulators, industry and specialists across the NSTA
  • Representing the NSTA to government and industry.
  • Providing high quality written products both for internal briefings and if required external publications; and providing guidance and support for other parts of the organisation

Career Support and Learning and Development are key elements of the NSTA’s Great Place to Work Model which underpins staff engagement.  Training, coaching will be provided to support successful delivery in the role. 

Person specification

Competence 1:          Leading and Communicating

All staff should demonstrate leadership appropriate to their grade and communicate with clarity, conviction and enthusiasm. It’s about supporting principles of fairness of opportunity for all, recognising the significant benefits that inclusion, diversity and a range of different backgrounds and experiences, bring to our organisation and society in general. At senior levels, it is about establishing a strong direction and a persuasive future vision; managing and engaging with people with honesty and integrity and upholding the reputation of the North Sea Transition Authority.

Competence 2:          Collaborating, Influencing & Including

Creating and maintaining positive, professional and trusting working relationships with a wide range of stakeholder both internally and externally to the NSTA requires collaborative working, sharing information and building supportive, responsive and respectful relationships, whilst ensuring assumptions are challenged in order to influence outcomes to meet the NSTA’s goals and objectives

Competence 3: Delivery      

Delivering timely performance with energy and taking responsibility and accountability for quality outcomes. The NSTA is a strong proponent of the Agile approach to delivering projects.  Effective delivery often requires staff to work as part of a multi-disciplinary team of colleagues, to deliver high quality results.

Competence 4: Decision Making and Judgement

Effective decision making and judgement is critical to the success of the NSTA.  The candidate must demonstrate a commitment to being objective; using sound judgement, evidence and knowledge to provide accurate, expert and professional advice. This involves creating evidence-based strategies, evaluating options, impacts, risks and solutions, and considering how to achieve organisational objectives while minimising risk and balancing, financial, economic and environmental considerations to provide sustainable outcomes.

Specialist Skills, Qualifications, Experience, Licenses, Memberships or Language

Essential:

• Degree-level education (or equivalent experience)
• Experience of working in or at the interface of Whitehall departments, ministers and Parliament and/or Holyrood/Scottish government
• Proven ability to deliver complex policy and strategy
• Experience in using programme and project management techniques
• Excellent communication skills, written and verbal, including drafting skills and ability to communicate complex issues succinctly to senior management
• Ability to deliver through others, including being able to influence multi-disciplinary project teams of technical experts
• Analytical and evidence-based policy development skills
• Proven ability to develop and maintain strong relationships with a wide variety of stakeholders

 Desirable:             

• Experience of oil and gas and/or CCS industry
• Experience of regulatory policy or regulatory environment
• Technical or commercial experience or good understanding of carbon storage / energy transition technologies