National Consultant – Digital Governance for Integrated and Smart Power Grids

Result of Service

The ultimate result of the consultant’s services is the provision of nationally grounded technical and analytical support that enables the development, validation, and initial application of a country-specific digital governance framework for the power sector, supporting effective and inclusive digital transformation of integrated and smart grid systems.

Work Location

Home based

Expected duration

19 months

Duties and Responsibilities

This consultancy is undertaken in the framework of the United Nations Development Account project “Policies for inclusive and digitalized power grids in countries with special needs in the ECE, ESCWA, and ESCAP regions”. The project is jointly implemented by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (ECE), the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), with ECE serving as the lead implementing entity. The project supports six beneficiary countries—Belarus and Tajikistan (ECE region), Iraq and Jordan (ESCWA region), and Mongolia and Georgia (ESCAP region)—which share a number of structural challenges in the power sector. These include aging and often centralized electricity infrastructure, limited grid flexibility to integrate decentralized and variable renewable energy resources, gaps in digitalization of grid planning and operations, and constrained institutional and regulatory capacity to manage the digital transformation of energy systems in an inclusive and coordinated manner. Across the target countries, digitalization efforts in the power sector remain uneven and fragmented, with underdeveloped governance frameworks related to data management, interoperability, cybersecurity, institutional coordination, and regulatory oversight. Without coherent and country-specific digital governance frameworks, investments in smart grid technologies and digital tools risk remaining ad hoc, short-lived, or insufficiently aligned with national development priorities. At the same time, there is significant potential for technological leapfrogging through responsible and inclusive digital transformation of integrated power systems. The project responds to these challenges by supporting the development of harmonized yet country-tailored digital governance policy frameworks to enable the modernization and digitalization of power grids. Under Output 1.1, the project supports mapping and diagnostic exercises of existing digitalization efforts, regulatory frameworks, and institutional capacities in the power sector to identify gaps and opportunities. Building on these findings, national digital-governance frameworks—tailored to each country’s energy context—will be developed. Under Output 1.2, the project supports the organization of an inaugural meeting and capacity-building activities for policymakers, regulators, and utilities, focusing on practical application of digital governance principles and international best practices. Under Output 1.3, the project supports the development and validation of country-specific digital governance frameworks and policy toolkits, providing actionable guidance to support implementation and institutionalization at the national level. In this context, ESCAP, in close coordination with ECE and ESCWA, is engaging national consultants in each beneficiary country to support national-level mapping and diagnostics, adapt global and regional best practices to local regulatory and institutional environments, contribute to the development of country-specific digital governance frameworks for the power sector, and provide practical guidance to support their implementation. In the case of Mongolia, the nation’s energy sector faces growing pressures from rising electricity demand, aging infrastructure, and the need to integrate renewable energy while ensuring reliable grid operations. The country relies heavily on coal, which accounts for over 86% of domestic electricity generation, despite Mongolia’s abundant solar and wind potential. The country has achieved near-universal electricity access, and electricity demand has grown steadily in recent years— up 166% since the year 2000 by nearly 6% in 2022 alone—placing strain on the grid and exposing system inefficiencies. Per capita electricity consumption of that same period has increased 250%, leading to a growing reliance on electricity imports, now accounting for a quarter of the supply. Industry is responsible for a large share of growing power demand. In addition, extremely cold winters lead to steep demand peaks for heating and lighting, increasing stress on the grid. The national power grid is managed by the National Dispatching Center using a SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) system introduced in 2006, which enables monitoring and control of key power system assets across Mongolia’s five major grid regions (Central Energy System, Western, Eastern, Altai-Uliastai, and Southern), which lack interconnection, preventing the efficient transfer of excess renewable energy from one region to another. Furthermore, the system operates on outdated platforms that cannot support incremental upgrades, and many substations still rely on manual inputs. These limitations, along with the heavy reliance on centralized coal-fired plants, reduce the grid's ability to respond in real time, coordinate decentralized generation, or integrate digital tools that support predictive maintenance and flexible operations. In 2022, renewables accounted for just under 10% of electricity production, with two-thirds of the renewable supply coming from wind power and the rest from solar. As Mongolia looks to scale up renewable energy—including through new utility-scale solar and wind investments—the lack of grid interoperability and digital coordination presents a critical barrier to modernization. This project offers Mongolia an opportunity to address these challenges by developing a comprehensive digital governance framework tailored to its energy context. Through targeted capacity-building, a harmonized policy toolkit, and regional knowledge exchange, the project will enable Mongolia to upgrade grid management systems, improve data sharing and coordination across utilities, and build institutional capacity to support an inclusive and resilient energy transition. By enhancing digital governance, Mongolia can improve service reliability, integrate variable renewables more effectively, and reduce reliance on coal, thereby advancing its climate and development goals. Other UN agencies and development partners are actively engaged in supporting Mongolia’s energy transition. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is financing the installation of battery energy storage systems to strengthen grid reliability and support renewable integration. UNDP has supported efforts on sustainable energy access in rural areas, including pilot projects deploying solar and hybrid mini-grids. GIZ and the World Bank have also provided support on energy efficiency and renewable energy development. This project will complement and build upon these efforts by addressing a key missing piece: the development of a harmonized national digital governance framework, integrated institutional capacity, and tools to manage smart, decentralized, and inclusive grid operations. Objective: Under the supervision of the Section Chief of the Energy Division of ESCAP (Project Manager), and in close coordination with UNECE, ESCWA, the international consultant, and designated national focal points, the consultant will coordinate and provide substantive technical leadership for national-level inputs to Outputs 1.1, 1.2 and 1.3. The consultant will draft and consolidate national analytical and technical materials, facilitate stakeholder consultations, and support validation processes. Final deliverables, including the country-specific framework and toolkit components, will be co-developed with national stakeholders and subject to technical review and quality assurance by the UN regional commissions and the international consultant. The consultant will work closely with UN regional commission staff and the international consultant to deliver Outputs 1.1, 1.2 and 1.3. The consultant will provide national technical leadership for the country workstream, while UN staff and the international consultant will provide guidance, technical review, and quality assurance, including ensuring consistency and alignment across the six beneficiary countries. The consultant will: 1. Lead and coordinate the national-level mapping and diagnostic assessment of digitalization efforts, regulatory frameworks, and institutional capacities in the power sector, including stakeholder consultations and validation of findings (OP1.1); 2. Draft and refine, in consultation with national stakeholders, the country-specific digital governance framework for the power sector, incorporating guidance and comments from UN staff and the international consultant and ensuring alignment with the project’s harmonized approach across countries (OP1.1); 3. Support the technical preparation and follow-up of the international inaugural meeting and related capacity-building activities for policymakers, regulators, and utilities, including preparation of national inputs and presentation materials as required (OP1.2); 4. Draft and support the validation of country-specific inputs to the digital governance toolkit and related implementation guidance, co-created with national stakeholders and finalized following technical review by UN staff and the international consultant (OP1.3). A main objective of this consultancy is to ensure that proposed governance frameworks and toolkit inputs are practical, implementable, and aligned with national development, energy, and digitalization priorities, while remaining consistent with the project’s cross-country methodology and quality standards. Duties and responsibilities: The consultant will undertake the following tasks: Mapping, diagnostics, and national framework development (OP1.1) • Conduct the national mapping and diagnostic assessment of digitalization efforts, regulatory frameworks, and institutional capacities in the power sector, using the project’s shared methodology and reporting template applied across all six beneficiary countries. • Undertake a structured desk review of relevant laws, regulations, strategies, standards, and institutional mandates related to digital governance, smart grids, data governance, interoperability, and cybersecurity responsibilities in the power sector. • Collect, validate, and synthesize evidence through stakeholder engagement (regulators, policymakers, utilities, and other relevant actors), including interviews/consultations as needed, to document ongoing digitalization initiatives, operational practices, and capacity constraints. • Produce and submit the national mapping and diagnostic report (including required tables/annexes per the common template), summarizing key findings, gaps, opportunities, and priority areas for governance improvement. • Draft and iteratively revise the country-specific digital-governance framework for integrated and smart grid systems, tailored to the national energy context and informed by the diagnostic findings; incorporate feedback from national stakeholders and technical review from UN staff and the international consultant to ensure quality and cross-country consistency. Inaugural meeting and national capacity-building workshops (OP1.2) • Prepare national technical inputs and presentation materials for the international inaugural meeting (e.g., national baseline slides, speaking notes, and concise briefs) and support follow-up documentation of feedback relevant to the framework/toolkit. • Support the design and delivery of the national capacity-building workshop for policymakers, regulators, and utility managers, including contributions to the agenda, case-based exercises, and session materials aligned with project guidance and international best practices. • Develop country-relevant training inputs (slides, exercises, and reference materials) that translate digital-governance principles into practical application for regulators, policymakers, and utilities, aligned with the harmonized approach across countries. • Document post-training follow-up actions by proposing a short set of practical next steps for participating institutions (e.g., priority policy actions, institutional coordination actions, and capacity needs) to support retention and application of training content. Harmonized policy toolkit, consultations, and validation/endorsement (OP1.3) • Provide country-specific inputs to the harmonized policy toolkit, including regulatory recommendations and an implementation roadmap that reflects national priorities, institutional capacities, and constraints, while aligning with the project’s harmonized structure across countries. • Facilitate iterative national consultations to co-create and refine the framework/toolkit recommendations with stakeholders, ensuring recommendations are actionable and grounded in national realities. • Support preparation and delivery of national validation workshop(s), including briefing materials and presentations, and produce a concise validation summary capturing key feedback, agreed adjustments, and action items. • Support the endorsement and ownership process by documenting how stakeholder inputs were addressed in the final framework/toolkit package and identifying practical steps for institutionalization (as feasible within the consultant’s scope). Quality and alignment • Ensure deliverables are practical and implementable, aligned with national development, energy, and digitalization priorities, and consistent with responsible and inclusive digital transformation principles. • Coordinate closely with UN staff and the international consultant throughout, responding to comments and revisions and ensuring outputs remain comparable across the six countries.

Qualifications/special skills

Bachelor's degree or equivalent in energy, engineering, economics, public policy, digital governance, or a related field. Minimum of 6 years of relevant professional experience in the energy sector, including experience with policy analysis, regulatory frameworks, institutional assessments, or digitalization initiatives. Experience working with government institutions and utilities is required. Experience with smart grids, digital governance, or power sector reform is an asset.

Languages

Good command of written and spoken English is required, including excellent command in Mongolian language.

Additional Information

Not available.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.