Senior Associate Cost Controller

About the Company

Since its establishment in 2008 Mulilo has grown into one of South Africas leading Independent Power Producers (IPP). Mulilo is majority owned by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) with Norfund holding an additional investment through the Norwegian Climate Investment Fund.

Mulilo develops constructs and operates utility scale wind solar PV and battery energy storage projects across South Africa. The company currently operates 450 MW of wind and solar capacity with a further 765 MW under construction. A portfolio exceeding 2 GW is advancing toward financial close while the long-term development pipeline exceeds 30 GW.

Mulilo has concluded power purchase agreements under the South African governments Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP) as well as private offtake agreements with several large corporate energy users.

Mulilo places significant emphasis on its people and recognises that successful infrastructure delivery depends on capable and committed teams. The company prides itself on providing a world-class working environment with a clear focus on career progression and personal growth. Grounded in its values Mulilo fosters a culture of accountability collaboration and purpose while remaining committed to its environmental social and governance responsibilities.

About this role

The Senior Associate: Cost Controller is responsible for supporting strong financial control cost visibility budget discipline and reporting quality across the Mulilo platform. The role focuses on monitoring operating and project-related expenditure analysing budget versus actual performance supporting cost recovery processes maintaining sound cost allocations and producing clear management information that enables timely decision-making.

The role is expected to combine technical cost-control capability with strong business understanding. The incumbent should help ensure that costs are correctly coded accurately reported well explained and aligned to approved budgets while also supporting high-quality monthly management reporting finance pack preparation high-quality monthly management reporting finance pack preparation process improvement and better use of finance systems and reporting tools.

A key part of the role is to help translate underlying finance data into structured management-account and board-ready reporting across relevant Mulilo entities projects service lines and cost pools.

A key part of the role is to help translate underlying finance data into structured management-account and board-ready reporting across relevant Mulilo entities projects service lines and cost pools.

Duties and responsibilities

Budget vs Actual Monitoring and Variance Analysis

• Prepare and maintain regular budget versus actual analysis across assigned departments projects entities or cost pools.
• Identify investigate quantify quantify and explain significant variances in operating expenditure development expenditure service costs service costs and other relevant cost categories.
• Ensure that all initial budgets/inputs for projects are uploaded onto the ERP system.
• Responsible for the Operating Expense Development Expense and Service Entity Budgets.
• Work with budget owners and operational stakeholders to obtain clear explanations for variances and translate these into concise financial commentary.
• Highlight cost trends risks opportunities and emerging pressures early enough to support management intervention.
• Support monthly quarterly and ad hoc reforecasts where required.

Cost Control Coding Accuracy and Budget Discipline

• Monthly monitor of expenditure against approved budgets approved allocations approved allocations and approved cost-recovery recovery assumptions.
• Monthly review of cost postings for accuracy completeness and alignment to the correct general ledger accounts cost centres projects entities and reporting lines and reporting lines.
• Identify misallocations coding errors duplicate charges unapproved spend and unusual movements and drive timely correction.
• Support stronger spend governance by flagging transactions or patterns that may breach approval limits policy or delegated authority requirements.
• Assist in improving the consistency and quality of cost-control practices across the business.

Cost Recovery Allocations and Recharge Management

• Support the preparation validation and review of cost recovery calculations allocation models and recharge logic.
• Assist with analysing originating cost pools departmental cost build-up and the allocation of costs to the relevant entities projects or recovery streams.
• Review overhead recharges inter-company allocations recoveries and cost-sharing logic for accuracy and supportability.
• Reconcile recovery-related reporting outputs to underlying source data and investigate exceptions.

Month-End Close Financial Close and Financial Reporting Support

• Contribute to month-end close activities by ensuring cost reporting is complete accurate and delivered on time.
• Processing transactions and reporting for specific entities.
• Monthly reporting on Operating Expense and Development Expense Actuals against the Budget.
• Report on Development Expenditure per project on an ongoing and leading up to Financial close.
• Ensure that the Development Expense is recovered completely as per the Financial Model.
• Support the delivery of reporting to agreed month-end deadlines and help reduce late corrections and rework.

Timesheet Governance and Project Code Maintenance

• Monitor and enforce timesheet compliance ensuring all employees book time accurately and timeously against the correct project codes and phases.
• Follow up on missing incomplete or incorrectly coded timesheets and escalate non-compliance where necessary.
• Maintain and update project codes phases and task structures to ensure they remain current accurately reflect active work and support meaningful reporting.
• Support the alignment between timesheet data project budgets and cost recovery/allocation processes.
• Report on timesheet booking rates utilisation and compliance to support management oversight.

Business Central Administration: Project Codes Structures and Dimensions

• Administer and maintain project codes project structures and dimension values within Microsoft Business Central.
• Set up new projects phases and tasks in BC in line with approved project documentation and internal standards.
• Ensure dimension values (cost centres projects entities departments) are correctly configured consistently applied and aligned to reporting requirements.
• Manage changes to project structures including closures extensions and reconfigurations ensuring downstream reporting is not compromised.
• Support master data quality and act as a point of reference for project and dimension setup queries from finance and operational teams.

GL and Project Module Reconciliation

• Perform regular reconciliation between the General Ledger and the Project Module in Business Central to ensure alignment of financial data.
• Identify investigate and clearly document all reconciling items between the two modules.
• Process or coordinate the necessary journals and adjustments to bring the GL and Project Module into alignment on a timely basis.
• Highlight systemic or recurring reconciling items and work with relevant teams to resolve root causes.
• Maintain a reconciliation tracker to provide visibility of outstanding items and their resolution status.

Controls and Financial Governance

• Maintain clear audit trails and supporting files for key analyses journals adjustments and reconciliations.
• Ensure that material balances and movements are supported by sufficient evidence and documented review logic.
• Identify control weaknesses recurring errors or process gaps and escalate these appropriately.
• Support internal and external audit requests by providing well-organised support and explanations.

Journals Adjustments and Data Integrity

• Prepare or support journals for cost reallocations accruals corrections and other finance adjustments in line with internal policies and review requirements.
• Manage the Budget Manager and reallocation application and attend to all tickets.
• Investigate data quality issues across ERP reporting models and working files and support remediation.
• Help improve discipline around master data chart of accounts usage cost centre logic dimensions and reporting consistency.

Systems Reporting Tools and Process Improvement

• Use finance and reporting systems effectively including ERP and reporting tools such as Microsoft Business Central Excel Power BI PowerApps SharePoint and ClickUp.
• Support automation and process improvement initiatives that improve reporting speed reduce manual effort strengthen control and improve management insight and improve management insight.
• Help develop test refine and maintain reporting files templates dashboards and pack structures and pack structures used for cost reporting and analysis.
• Participate in improving ERP utilisation reporting workflows finance process documentation and reporting standardisation and reporting standardisation.
• Contribute ideas that enhance efficiency reporting accuracy and financial insight.

Stakeholder Engagement and Business Partnering

• Work closely with finance colleagues budget owners department heads project teams and other internal stakeholders.
• Translate financial data into clear business language that supports decision-making.
• Follow up proactively on outstanding explanations support schedules approvals and corrective actions.
• Build credibility through reliable analysis responsiveness and strong attention to detail.
• Support a culture of accountability around cost ownership reporting quality reporting quality and financial discipline.

Key Deliverables

• Accurate and timely budget versus actual reporting.
• Clear monthly variance commentary with quantified drivers.
• Reliable cost recovery allocation and recharge and recharge analysis.
• Well-supported month-end schedules reconciliations and reporting packs.
• Consistent structured management-account outputs across relevant entities.
• Timely identification and correction of misallocations reporting inconsistencies and cost errors.
• Documented working papers and audit-ready support for key outputs.
• High-quality reporting support for management CFO and Board-level review where required.
• Continuous improvement inputs for reporting automation and ERP utilisation.

Measures of Success

Success in this role is likely to be demonstrated through:

• Timely delivery of monthly cost reporting management packs management packs and commentary.
• Low levels of avoidable rework and post-close corrections.
• Clear actionable variance explanations for management.
• Improved accuracy of coding allocations inter-company recharges inter-company recharges and recoveries.
• Strong support for month-end closing and reporting deadlines.
• Good quality reconciliations and documented support.
• Positive contribution to finance process improvement automation and reporting standardisation and reporting standardisation.
• Strong working relationships with finance and operational stakeholders.

Required skills and education background.

Minimum Requirements

• Bachelors degree in Finance Accounting Management Accounting Economics or a related field.
• Completed articles (signed off) at a registered audit firm.
• Progress toward or completion of a relevant professional qualification (for example CIMA ACCA SAICA SAIPA or equivalent) would be advantageous.

Experience

• Relevant experience in financial controlling management accounting cost control project finance support or reporting.
• Experience working with budget versus actual analysis variance commentary cost allocations management accounts management accounts reconciliations and reporting packs.
• Experience working across multiple entities service lines or project environments would be advantageous.
• Experience in a project-based infrastructure energy engineering or similarly complex commercial environment would be advantageous.
• Experience with ERP and reporting tools including strong Excel capability; exposure to Business Central and Power BI would be beneficial.

Technical Skills

• Strong financial analysis and numerical skills.
• Good understanding of cost control management reporting and month-end processes.
• Ability to investigate transactions and identify root causes of variances or control issues.
• Strong Excel skills including working with large datasets and building structured analysis.
• Ability to work with reporting systems dashboards data extracts and management-pack support files and management-pack support files.
• Sound understanding of financial controls documentation and audit support requirements.

Behavioural Competencies

• High attention to detail and accuracy.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving capability.
• Good judgement in identifying material issues and escalation points.
• Ability to communicate clearly and concisely with both finance and non-finance stakeholders.
• Strong ownership and follow-through.
• Ability to work under pressure and meet reporting deadlines.
• Organised disciplined and able to manage multiple priorities.
• Continuous improvement mindset with interest in automation and smarter ways of working.

Role Scope / Practical Focus Areas

Depending on team structure this role may spend significant time on:

• OPEX and DEVEX cost review.
• Cost pool analysis and recovery support.
• Allocation logic recharge accuracy recharge accuracy and coding quality.
• Monthly management accounts support.
• Reforecast and planning support.
• Cash flow and working-capital analysis.
• Reporting for service and project entities. Entity-level reporting pack preparation.
• Reforecast and planning support.
• Cash flow and working-capital analysis.
• Reporting for service and project entities.
• Finance workflow improvement and automation support.

Desirable attributes

The ideal candidate would have a passion for the Renewable Energy sector and personality traits would include a high level of diligence determination resilience and agility.

Mulilo is an employer of choice and is offering an extremely competitive total remuneration package for this position.

Additional Information

Might be required to work overtime according to operational needs.

The position is based at the offices of the company but travel may be required occasionally.

Required Experience:

Senior IC