Astron Energy Jobs – 15 September 2026

To apply, click on the link at the end of the posts and all the best with your applications

Head: Business Development

The Head of Business Development & M&A is the primary commercial and investment lead for refinery and infrastructure growth across the value chain. This leader will run the end-to-end investment and divestment process — sourcing, evaluating, structuring, executing and integrating transactions — while leading a dynamic team and partnering across operations, trading, finance, legal and commercial functions. The role owns complex financial models and business cases, presents recommendations to Investment Committees and Boards, and drives post-investment performance to ensure value creation.

Key responsibilities

• Strategic leadership
  • Lead and grow a high-performing BD & M&A team; set priorities, develop capability and manage resourcing across projects.
  • Define BD strategy and pipeline in support of corporate growth, commercial and decarbonisation objectives.
• Transaction lifecycle & governance
  • Manage full investment and divestment lifecycle: deal sourcing, screening, valuation, diligence, negotiation, execution and close.
  • Coordinate internal and external advisors (legal, tax, technical, environmental, commercial) and run robust due diligence processes.
  • Prepare clear analysis and recommendations for Investment Committees and Boards; lead decision reviews and approval processes.
• Financial analysis & modelling
  • Build and maintain complex financial models and valuation analyses (DCF, sensitivity, scenario)) to quantify value, risk and returns.
• Refinery & infrastructure focal point
  • Serve as the primary focal point for the evaluation of refinery and infrastructure projects, including growth projects, expansions and integrations.
• Market entry, non-traditional revenue & asset monetisation
  • Lead business case development for new revenue streams (EV charging,  renewables partnerships) and evaluate market entry options.
  • Identify underutilised assets or land for monetisation through leasing, divestment or third-party integration.

Team Effectiveness

• Live the Company values and work effectively as an active and contributing member to achieve team goals.
• Implement continuous improvement methodologies across the function, including the coaching and mentoring of teams to drive business excellence.

Safety, Health, Quality and Environment Compliance:

• Ensure compliance with all Safety, Health, Environmental and all other applicable regulatory statutes, and all other safety and quality processes for the area of responsibility/work.

Stakeholder Relationship Management:

•     Identify, build, and nurture trust and collaborative relationships with internal and external stakeholders.

Key internal stakeholders:

•    EXCO; Key Partners

Information sharing, decision making, reporting and planning

Implementation of projects and results tracking

Support key stakeholders

Key external stakeholders:

•    Glencore

Align on strategy, key initiatives, and performance outcomes

Best practice engagements

Professional Qualification and Certifications:

• Degree in Business-related activity (e.g., BCom, Finance, Economics) 
• Master’s degree in business administration (MBA) is preferred

Work Experience:

• Significant experience (8+ years) in corporate development, BD, M&A, investment banking or strategy consulting with demonstrable transaction execution experience.
• 5+ years’ experience of working in Integrated Downstream Oil with significant exposure to and demonstrable understanding of Supply / Operations / Logistics / Trading or related value drivers and KPIs
• Track record of delivery in commercial optimisation, project implementation and process improvement

Knowledge and skills:

• Proven leadership experience managing multi-disciplinary teams and complex cross-functional projects.
• Strong technical ability in financial modelling, valuation and commercial due diligence; advanced Excel skills and familiarity with modelling best-practice.
• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills; experience presenting to Investment Committees and Boards.
• Strong negotiation and commercial structuring capability.
• Comfortable operating across the downstream value chain; good understanding of downstream oil & gas (refining, terminals, distribution, logistics) is highly desirable.
• Familiarity with regulatory frameworks relevant to terminals, fuels and energy infrastructure.

Application deadline:27 September 2026

Click here to apply

Turnaround Lead

The Turnaround (TAR) Lead is accountable for the end-to-end planning, preparation and execution of the refinery’s major and on-stream turnaround programme, delivering each event safely, on schedule and within approved budget. Leading a team of Turnaround Planners, Engineers, Analysts and Coordinators, the Turnaround Lead integrates operational, maintenance, reliability and integrity scope into a single executable plan, and provides the turnaround management capability that underpins refinery availability and asset integrity.

Strategic Implementation

• Translate the refinery reliability and maintenance strategy into an executable multi-year turnaround programme with measurable schedule, cost and integrity outcomes.
• Facilitate the development of turnaround best practice and execution excellence, embedding lessons learned, benchmarking and continuous improvement across successive turnaround events.
• Lead the development of the Turnaround (TAR) strategy and schedule in support of the Reliability and Maintenance Manager, integrating process unit requirements, Fixed Equipment Integrity (FEI) inspection scope, reliability recommendations and operational availability constraints.
• Lead the turnaround scope-management process from initial scope development through scope freeze to post-freeze change control, ensuring scope decisions are risk-based, cost-aware and aligned to the approved turnaround envelope.

Operational Effectiveness

• Lead the planning and scoping of each turnaround, directing the Turnaround Lead Planner in the production of the detailed Integrated Master Schedule (IMS) and ensuring all work scope is defined, estimated and resource-loaded ahead of execution.
• Manage the scope-freeze process and post-freeze scope changes through the appropriate governance forum, balancing schedule, cost and asset integrity outcomes when discovery work arises.
• Lead the execution and supervision of the turnaround work scope, coordinating maintenance, contractor and operational resources to deliver the event safely and to plan.
• Manage discovery work and execution scope changes during the turnaround, directing the Turnaround Engineering team in the timely assessment, estimation and disposition of emergent work.
• Lead the safe execution of on-stream turnarounds — directing partial shutdown, isolation coordination with Operations, and maintenance execution to reduce operations for field work without compromising unit availability.
• Lead on-stream turnaround planning and scheduling end to end, ensuring timely close-out of work scope, inspection findings and handover documentation for each event.
• Add day-to-day delivery, running processes, monitoring performance, managing exceptions.

Financial Management

• Manage budgets and monitor expenses ensuring expenditure is within approved budgets.
• Drive delivery of each turnaround within the approved budget, tracking actual spend against sanction throughout execution and escalating material cost deviations to the Reliability and Maintenance Manager.
• Support the turnaround budget approval process by providing accurate scope estimates, resource requirements and contractor cost inputs for CEO and Board sanction submissions.

People Management

• Provide direction and define objectives to be achieved in area of responsibility.
• Manage performance of direct reports ensuring agreement of annual goals and measuring performance against agreed goals and addressing non-performance issues.
• Deploy people management processes effectively, in line with Company policies, procedures and prevailing improvement initiatives.
• Drive operational excellence through area of supervision.
• Oversee resource deployment to ensure adequate cover and resilience in the team.
• Promote, support, and encourage team members to live the Company values.
• Drive a culture of high performance and accountability and encourage team members to live the Company values.
• Build deep turnaround management capability within the team, coaching the Turnaround Lead Planner, Senior Turnaround Engineer, Turnaround Analyst and Turnaround Coordinator in scheduling, scope control, contractor management and lessons-learned capture.
• Ensure the turnaround team is resourced and resilient across the annual programme, deploying planners, engineers and coordinators effectively through peak turnaround planning and execution periods.
• Live the Company values and work effectively as an active and contributing member to achieve team goals.

Safety, Health, Environment and Quality

• Ensure compliance with all Safety, Health, Environmental (SHE) and all other applicable regulatory statutes, and all other safety and quality processes for the area of responsibility/work.
• Steward the Operations Management System (OMS) within Astron Energy to ensure continuous improvement.
• Ensure Safety, Health, Environment and Quality (SHEQ) accountability is upheld across turnaround execution — covering shutdown, decontamination, confined space entry, hot work and contractor safety management — working within the Control of Work framework owned by Operations for permit-to-work and equipment isolation.
• Ensure all turnaround activities comply with the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Act 85 of 1993, Astron Energy SHEQ policies, the permit-to-work (PTW) system and Management of Change (MOC) requirements.
• Support the Major Pre-Startup Safety Review (PSSR) and startup authorisation process, ensuring mechanical completion, quality sign-off and handover documentation are complete before units are returned to operations.
• Drive a zero-harm safety culture across all contracted turnaround service providers, enforcing site safety standards, toolbox talks and pre-job safety reviews throughout each execution event.

Stakeholder Relationship Management

• Lead the turnaround contracting strategy and contractor selection in conjunction with the Procurement Manager, ensuring contracting models are appropriate to scope complexity, risk profile and market conditions.
• Ensure the turnaround Integrated Master Schedule (IMS) is endorsed by the Operations Manager Refinery and Technical Services Manager before each event, and is realistic, resource-levelled and agreed by all key execution stakeholders.
• Interface with the Fixed Equipment Integrity (FEI) Lead, Reliability Lead and Process Support Lead on turnaround scope development, scope freeze and post-freeze change management, ensuring inspection and reliability scope is fully integrated.
• Coordinate with the Business Team Managers and Operations Turnaround Lead on unit handover, shutdown sequencing and startup readiness, minimising impact on refinery availability and integrated margin.
• Provide input into post-turnaround analysis and lessons-learned processes — accountable to the Reliability and Maintenance Manager for the quality and completeness of turnaround execution lessons captured.
• Interface with the Procurement Lead and Warehouse Lead to ensure materials procurement, long-lead items and specialist equipment are secured within the turnaround schedule and budget.
• Identify, build, and nurture trust and collaborative relationships with internal and external stakeholders.

Professional Qualification and Certifications:

• National Diploma or Bachelor of Engineering (BEng) / Bachelor of Technology (BTech) in Mechanical, Chemical or Industrial Engineering (minimum)
• Project management certification (e.g., PMP) or turnaround management qualification advantageous
• Government Certificate of Competency (GCC) — Factories advantageous

Work Experience:

• Minimum 10 years’ experience in refinery, petrochemical or heavy industrial maintenance, with significant exposure to turnaround planning and execution
• Minimum 5 years in a turnaround leadership or senior turnaround planning role with direct programme delivery accountability
• Proven track record in major turnaround scope management, Integrated Master Schedule (IMS) development, contractor management and PSSR / startup processes
• Experience managing large multi-discipline contractor workforces during turnaround execution
• Experience with turnaround planning and scheduling tools (e.g., Primavera P6) and SAP Plant Maintenance advantageous

Application deadline:23 September 2026

Click here to apply

Senior Process Engineer

The Senior Process Support Engineer is responsible for providing advanced process engineering support to refinery operations to maximise unit throughput, reliability, energy efficiency, safety, and environmental compliance. The role serves as a key technical resource, identifying and resolving operational constraints, improving process performance, and supporting the refinery’s business objectives through sound engineering practices and continuous improvement initiatives.

Key responsibilities include:

• Monitoring and optimising the performance of assigned refinery process units to maximise production efficiency and minimise operating costs.
• Identifying, troubleshooting, and resolving process, equipment, and operational issues to ensure safe and reliable plant operation.
• Leading and supporting process engineering studies, conceptual design packages, and evaluations for small capital and improvement projects.
• Applying a strong understanding of refinery economics and process value chains to identify opportunities for value creation and operational improvement.
• Developing equipment sizing calculations and preparing technical documentation, including equipment datasheets and engineering specifications.
• Maintaining and updating process safety information, including P&IDs, operating envelopes, and associated technical documentation.
• Preparing technical reports, engineering studies, performance reviews, and technical memoranda to support decision-making and knowledge sharing.
• Identifying plant constraints and leading investigations and optimisation studies to improve unit performance and capacity.
• Planning, coordinating, and evaluating plant test runs to support process optimisation, LP model updates, and operational improvements.
• Providing technical guidance and responses to deviations from Safe Operating Limits (SOLs), Integrity Operating Windows (IOWs), and Critical Process Variables (CPVs).
• Managing and completing Management of Change (MOC) activities in accordance with company and regulatory requirements.
• Supporting refinery Turnarounds and Catalyst Regeneration activities by delivering process engineering work scopes and achieving key turnaround milestones.
• Coaching, mentoring, and developing junior engineers, graduates, and trainees while promoting strong engineering, safety, and operational excellence standards.
• Developing and maintaining process models, simulations, mass balances, and energy balances to support optimisation and long-term planning activities.
• Ensuring compliance with environmental legislation and company standards through the identification, reporting, mitigation, and elimination of environmental risks and deficiencies.
• Collaborating effectively with multidisciplinary teams, including Operations, Mechanical Engineering, Control Systems, Planning, Safety, Environmental, and Project Engineering functions to deliver business objectives.

Minimum Qualifications and Experience required

• Work Experience and qualifications:
• BSc / BEng Degree in Chemical Engineering.
• 8 to 12 years of direct refining experience.

Knowledge and skills: 

• Mastery of distillation, hydro processing including technically astute and fluency in refinery processes
• Sound communication and good stakeholder engagement. 
• Able to drive for results and manage complex inter-relationships

Application deadline:15 September 2026

Click here to apply

We wish you all the best with your applications