International Project Risk Management: ATA Solar Project in Timor

This report analyzes the risks associated with the ATA solar panel installation project in Timor, funded by Google. The primary focus is on identifying potential threats and outlining mitigation strategies. The analysis emphasizes the importance of engaging local partner organizations and the government to navigate challenges effectively. Key risks include logistical issues such as equipment transportation from China or Australia, potential conflicts with local customs and expectations, and ensuring the project's legitimacy within the community. The report suggests incorporating local residents into the project team, leveraging local organizations for their experience in community engagement and resource management, and addressing communication barriers through local partnerships. By prioritizing stakeholder engagement and proactive risk management, the ATA project can enhance its prospects for successful implementation and long-term sustainability.

Running head: INTERNATIONAL PROJECT MANAGEMENT
INTERNATIONAL PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Name of Student
Name of University
Author Note

1INTERNATIONAL PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................3
Discussion..................................................................................................................................4
Conclusion..................................................................................................................................7
Reference....................................................................................................................................8

2INTERNATIONAL PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Executive summary
The report states the risks related to the project of ATA in Timor for installing solar
panels funded by google. The purpose of this report is to analyze the risks and find the
procedure to control the threats. The detailed analysis has been done of the risks and the
reasons along with the way to mitigate the threat by using local partner organization and
government has been stated. The report also describes the stakeholder engagement and
management has been described here.

3INTERNATIONAL PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Introduction
The purpose of the report is to analyze the risk management cycle as a guide and
describe how the ATA should proceed with each stage of the cycle in order to come up with a
sound project risk management plan for this project. The report also describes the stakeholder
engagement and management has been described here. The report also analyses project risk
plan of working in timor island solar project which is funded by Google. The report precisely
states the project risk of the solar project in a new country like Timor island. Finally how risk
can be mitigated has been stated in case of ATA project.

4INTERNATIONAL PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Discussion
The ATA project of solar panel which is being funded by GOOGLE has various risk
and to make the project successful it is necessary to analyze the risk management plan and
implement it accordingly to make the project feasible and within deadline. It is crucial to take
time before the start of the project to analyze the process how stakeholder engagement it will
help to ensure community engagement(Tanoto & Rohi, 2015). It can not be overlooked that
engaging local people of Timor island will help in designing a baseline survey, so in many
communities which will be benefited by the solar panels. Interviewing the local people will
help in understanding the need of them and how the solar panel will help them to provide
electricity to support them for education and work which will certainly improve their
livelihood by utilizing the solar panel generated electricity at night time. The baseline survey
is important to track the progress of the project and outcomes(Kumara et al., 2017). The
transportation of the equipments from china or Australia to east timor is also expensive and
problematic. It is necessary to co ordinate with the local government in order to import the
equipments to Timor and set up the solar panels there(Azid & Jokhan, 2013). The project risk
can be mitigated by maintaining proper communication with government and quickly
resolving the issues faced locally. The government schemes are not robust compared to the
company’s scheme and this difference is a challenge for the company which will be mitigated
with proper communication and coordination between the company and Timor government.
Previously the solar panels installed by government were broken down and discharged the
batteries quickly by using the solar panels all day for electricity instead of using it in the night
time. The major project risk is not being able to incorporate legitimacy in the project because
of a foreign company and staffs who are working in Timor. The threat can be controlled by
engaging the local people who are beneficiaries of the solar project as a part of the team by

5INTERNATIONAL PROJECT MANAGEMENT
collecting survey information from them. Judging by the history of east Timor the inhabitants
of the country may find a foreign company inappropriate to work and tell people what to do.
This can be solved by seeking help from local organizations who will be instructing their
fellow countrymen for the tasks those have to be done by them. As the external organization
that comes to the country with the money to do the project, automatically there are power
issues at play there. The power issue can be resolved by employing Timorese people and give
them authorization to take some decisions. The local organizations have experience of
working in sanitation and water projects and they can utilize the resources well. They already
knew what kind of things worked really well with committees and managing money. Because
this is the other crucial thing in Timor as well, is the concept of communities managing large
sums of money, that's quite a new concept and it's also quite high risk. So the local partner
organizations who have worked with them previously and with the communities on managing
water they knew how the things tended to work efficiently in Timor(Scholes & Duffy, 2017).
They are also aware about the pitfalls so employing them will reduce the risk from local
community dissatisfaction or any decision that can lead to failure of project. The
communication barrier is also a major drawback but the local organisation that ATA have on
board now, they can just pick up on those nuances, that even if we understood the language
directly translated, there's just certain things about the culture and the values that they will be
able to understand and pick up on and address those concerns that may not be expressed
directly(Dornan & Shah, 2016). Employee satisfaction can be ensured by understanding the
problems of the Timorese people through the Timorese people of partner organization. Timor
as being a developing country carries on a tradition of indirect communication which makes
it difficult for the foreign companies to get the nuisance. So understanding the problems at
local level is important to control the threat. The procurement is somewhat challenging in
East Timor as it is impossible to use local suppliers. The local companies can not be

6INTERNATIONAL PROJECT MANAGEMENT
supported by ATA in this case. When it comes to the actual materials and equipment that are
needed to make these solar systems which are installed on people's homes, ATA actually
can't use a Timorese organisation in that case.

7INTERNATIONAL PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Conclusion
It can be concluded from the report that the ATA company can mitigate the project
risks by suitable planning and employing local organizations for executing some tasks and
employ Timorese people to instruct Timorese staffs working for the company. This will in
large scale help the organization to successfully implement the project. The risks are
controllable by using proper planning to manage the project.

8INTERNATIONAL PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Reference
Azid, S. I., & Jokhan, A. (2013). Mapping of organisations involved in energy research
activities in the Pacific Island region, their research projects, budgets and research
gaps. In Climate-Smart Technologies (pp. 89-96). Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg.
Dornan, M., & Shah, K. U. (2016). Energy policy, aid, and the development of renewable
energy resources in Small Island Developing States. Energy Policy, 98, 759-767.
Kumara, I. N. S., Ashari, M., Sampeallo, A. S., & Pawitra, A. A. G. A. (2017). Simulated
Energy Production and Performance Ratio of 5 MW Grid-Connected Photovoltaic
under Tropical Savannah Climate in Kupang Timor Island of Indonesia. International
Journal of Engineering and Technology, 7(2), 117-129.
Scholes, C. A., & Duffy, B. (2017). Sun, wind and fire: Renewable energy in the Pacific. AQ-
Australian Quarterly, 88(4), 32.
Tanoto, Y., & Rohi, D. (2015). Energy and Environment Implications of Long-Term Power
Development Involving Renewable Energy: a Case of Timor Island, Indonesia.
In Applied Mechanics and Materials (Vol. 815, pp. 444-448). Trans Tech
Publications.