Great British Energy
Director of Commercial
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About the Organisation
Great British Energy (GBE) is a publicly owned energy company, created to accelerate the deployment of clean energy technologies and to ensure UK taxpayers, billpayers, communities and the energy workforce reap the benefits of a clean and secure energy system.
Our ambition is to become a lasting national institution that the British public will be proud of; a developer, constructor and owner of homegrown energy that is Clean, Secure and Yours.
From our base in Aberdeen, we are building GBE not just as a company, but as a cornerstone of the UK’s energy landscape: a trusted, transparent and innovative public champion that stands shoulder to shoulder with the leading state-owned energy companies of Europe. GBE will become recognised both at home and abroad as a world-class energy institution that embodies the values, expertise and ambition of the UK.
The Great British Energy Act, which received Royal Assent in May 2025, provided for the UK’s first publicly owned national energy company to develop, own and operate energy assets since the privatisation of the Central Electricity Generating Board in the early 1990s. The 2025 Spending Review allocated GBE and GBE-Nuclear over £8.3 billion to deploy towards our missions of delivering clean energy for the people. More details can be found in the Great British Energy founding statement on the Great British Energy website.
About the Role
GBE Local is central to our strategy. We believe Great British Energy can be a transformative force in local and community energy, with a clear ambition: to make hosting and owning a local energy scheme achievable for every community across the UK.
The Director of Commercial will play a pivotal role in realising this ambition. This role is responsible for designing, structuring and leading the commercial model that underpins GBE Local’s portfolio – ensuring that its products, projects and partnerships are financially robust, scalable and capable of unlocking significant levels of public and private investment.
Leading the development of commercial strategies, financial products and frameworks and market partnerships, the Director of Commercial will enable GBE Local to act as a true market maker – transforming local and community energy into a repeatable, investable asset class in line with the ambitions of the Local Power Plan.
A key component of this role is shaping the commercial approach to the Local Energy Platform – a digital interface between GBE and local and community energy customers. This platform will manage and enhance the end-to-end customer journey, enabling simplified access to products, funding, partnerships and delivery support. The Director of Commercial will ensure the platform is commercially effective, scalable and aligned to user needs, supporting pipeline development and standardisation across the portfolio.
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Key Responsibilities
Commercial Strategy & Business Models
- Develop and lead the commercial strategy for GBE Local, aligned to the Local Power Plan and wider GBE strategy.
- Design scalable, repeatable financial products to enable local and community energy projects.
- Ensure commercial models support multiple routes to market, including PPAs, local supply models, shared ownership structures and flexibility markets.
- Balance financial performance with public value outcomes, including affordability, community ownership and local economic benefit.
Financial Structuring & Capital Deployment
- Lead the design and deployment of commercial structures across GBE Local’s portfolio, including grants, loans, equity and blended finance solutions.
- Develop bankable project structures that attract private capital and institutional investment alongside public funding.
- Work closely with finance partners (e.g. UKIB, National Wealth Fund, commercial lenders) to crowd in investment and scale delivery.
- Support internal capital allocation by developing robust, data-driven investment cases (NPV, IRR, payback, risk-adjusted returns and community benefit metrics).
Product Commercialisation
- Partner with Market Development to ensure GBE Local products are commercially viable, scalable and aligned to customer needs.
- Define pricing, risk-sharing and contractual structures for products and programmes.
- Ensure products are designed to reduce transaction costs and complexity for customers and partners.
Partnerships & Deal Structuring
- Lead the development and negotiation of commercial partnerships with developers, finance providers and public sector organisations.
- Structure joint ventures, co-investments and shared ownership arrangements that enable community participation and value sharing.
- Establish standardised contractual frameworks to enable faster and more consistent deal execution.
Portfolio Commercial Performance
- Oversee the commercial performance of GBE Local’s portfolio, ensuring value for money and financial sustainability.
- Monitor and manage revenue streams, costs, risks and returns across projects and programmes.
- Implement portfolio optimisation strategies to balance risk, return and impact.
Local Energy Platform (Customer Interface)
- Co-lead the development and evolution of the Local Energy Platform alongside digital and delivery teams, ensuring alignment between commercial models and platform functionality.
- Ensure the platform enables a seamless end-to-end customer journey, reducing friction and transaction costs for local and community energy customers.
- Support the translation of commercial products into scalable, digitised customer journeys and standardised “self-service” pathways.
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Collaboration & Integration
- Work closely with Delivery to ensure commercial structures are deliverable and aligned with supply chain and operational realities.
- Partner with Market Development to align commercial models with customer needs and market opportunities.
- Collaborate across GBE (Strategy, Finance, Legal, Supply Chain) to ensure coherence and leverage scale.
Risk, Governance & Compliance
- Establish and oversee commercial governance frameworks, including deal approval processes and risk management.
- Ensure compliance with public sector requirements, subsidy control, procurement rules and financial governance standards.
- Manage commercial risks across the portfolio, including market, credit, counterparty and regulatory risks.
Performance & Impact
- Define and track commercial KPIs, including:
- Capital deployed and leveraged
- Risk-adjusted returns
- Cost of capital and financial efficiency
- Private investment mobilised
- Community benefit outcomes
- Ensure transparency and robust reporting aligned with public sector accountability standards.
Leadership & Capability Building
- Build and lead a high-performing commercial function, including expertise in project finance, structuring and contracting.
- Develop commercial capability across GBE Local, embedding best practice, tools and frameworks.
- Foster a culture of disciplined decision-making, innovation and accountability.
- Support senior external engagement alongside the Managing Director where required.
Person Specification
Essential Experience & Skills
- Experience designing innovative or first-of-a-kind commercial mechanisms.
- Significant experience in commercial leadership roles within energy, infrastructure, project finance or investment.
- Deep expertise in financial structuring, including debt, equity, blended finance and public-private partnership models.
- Proven track record of developing and scaling commercial models or platforms.
- Strong understanding of energy markets, revenue models and routes to market (e.g. PPAs, flexibility markets).
- Experience structuring and negotiating complex commercial agreements and partnerships.
- Ability to balance financial, strategic and public value objectives in decision-making.
- Strong stakeholder engagement skills, including experience working with financial institutions, government and private sector partners.
Desirable Experience
- Experience in local or community energy markets.
- Knowledge of UK regulatory frameworks, subsidy control and public sector finance.
- Familiarity with shared ownership and community participation models.
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