Electricity and Control October 2023

ENERGY MANAGEMENT + THE INDUSTRIAL ENVIRONMENT : PRODUCTS + SERVICES

Raising the representation of women in renewable energy

In the renewable energy industry where women constitute just 14% of the workforce, Babalwa Kekana demonstrates that the status quo can be challenged. Leading a team of 81, which comprises around 80% men and 20% women, Kekana is the Head of Services for Nordex Energy South Africa, which undertakes the operations and maintenance function for nine wind farms. Most of the team are technically skilled people who have qualifications in mechatronics, mechanical, and electrical disciplines, and most have completed the Nordex wind turbine technician training. Six of the service technicians are women. “The renewable energy industry in South Africa and globally has a long way to go to achieve gender parity and accommodate more diversity. Generally, there are fewer women than men in leadership and technical jobs in the renewable energy sector and this is evident too in my division, where technical and operational skills are needed. “The general perceptions of appropriate gender roles driven by industry and societal norms, and the physical nature of technician roles, contribute to the slow change to see more women in the industry. I’d like to see this challenged as I believe women have unique qualities, which include exceptional management and interperson al skills that can add value and help to create a thriving industry and organisations,” said Kekana. She entered the industry in its early years, a decade ago, describing the technical and commercial environ ment as demanding and at times intimidating, especially in relation to the complexity around wind turbine genera tors, which requires technical knowledge and an under standing of mechanics. However, through mentoring and her ability to face challenges head-on, Kekana was able to take on the many demands.

“Personally, I have maintained a curious and flexible mindset throughout my career and had the great privilege of observing the industry’s development from the ground up. I benefitted directly from being mentored by experienced international project managers during my early years who coached me through the entire value chain of the construction and operations of renewable projects. This learning has been profound and critical to my development, far more than any academic curriculum. It is this experience that has enabled me to develop my leadership capabilities and provide direction and guidance to my service team,” she said. However, she points out that despite the company’s successful efforts to increase gender representation across management, it is a continuous challenge to ac cess a pipeline of talent in the turbine maintenance areas of the business. To move beyond the current gender status, deep rooted gender assumptions, which are sometimes cultural and unconscious, need to be tackled, she says. A key factor is increasing the number of women studying and working in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) fields. For the sector, the starting point, Kekana believes, is a clear industry plan that seeks to develop a diverse pipeline of women in the renewable energy industry. Secondly, organisations need to focus on recruiting candidates with transferable skills who can bring diverse perspectives to the field, and thirdly, renewable energy companies can set targets to increase the presence of women on boards, in leadership, and in the workforce. “During our recruitment process for the 2023/2024 in ternship programme, we noticed the low number of wom en putting their hands up for internship opportunities, which means awareness of the industry opportunities is still limited. However, we will continue our efforts to help change this unfounded perception,” Kekana said. Working together with industry associations to help effect broad change, Kekana supports the Gender Diversity Working Group’s endeavours to increase skills development from the grassroots up. In addition to this, the Energy and Water Sector Education and Training Authority (EWSETA) women’s management development programme, was launched this year in collaboration with the South African Wind Energy Association (SAWEA), to develop sector leadership. “I am directly involved with the SAWEA Working Group’s recently launched ‘Management Development Programme for Women in Renewable Energy’ along with three of my colleagues. The exposure thus far has been very valuable in terms of networking with industry col leagues, in similar roles as myself,” Kekana said.

Babalwa Kekana heads up operations and maintenance services at Nordex Energy South Africa.

For more information visit: www.nordex-online.com/en/south-africa/

Nordex Energy South Africa (NESA) has a total installed capacity of more than 1 GW in nine wind farms which it owns and operates around the country.

18 Electricity + Control OCTOBER 2023