Senior Budget Manager / Cost Accountant

Job Summary

The Senior Budget Manager / Cost Accountant is responsible for leading the budgeting, forecasting, and cost accounting processes for the refinery business. The role ensures robust financial planning, cost control, and variance analysis to support operational efficiency, margin optimisation, and decision-making. This individual will collaborate closely with Operations, Strategy, Supply Chain, and Headquarter Corporate Finance to ensure alignment between financial plans and production realities. This individual will make sure operational KPIs align with financial KPIs and deliver timely variance analysis.

The role requires deep expertise in cost accounting within process industries (ideally oil & gas or refining), a strong grasp of refinery operating dynamics (e.g., feedstock-to-yield ratios, variable/fixed cost drivers), and the ability to translate financial insights into actionable operational guidance. Deep understanding in procurement processes and ability to analyse and monitor the cost parameters from RFQ to delivery.

Key Duties and Responsibilites

Budgeting & Forecasting
• Lead the refinery’s annual budgeting and quarterly reforecasting process in collaboration with department heads and corporate finance.
• Develop budget models that reflect production volumes, input costs, energy usage, and maintenance schedules.
• Prepare cash flow forecasts and support funding needs planning in coordination with Trade Finance, Group Treasury and CFO.

Cost Accounting & Product Costing
• Maintain and monitor accurate cost accounting records, including standard costs, actual cost capture, and cost center allocations.
• Track material usage, process losses, by-product credits, and overheads to establish true cost of production.
• Analyse cost-to-serve for different products (PMS, AGO, Jet, PPP) and monitor refinery margin structures.

Operational & Financial Analysis
• Prepare and analyse variance reports comparing actual results to budget and forecast at a granular level (per unit, per shift, per plant).
• Work closely with Refinery Operations to understand root causes for deviations in cost, yield, or efficiency.
• Recommend corrective actions and drive continuous improvement in cost management practices.

Internal Controls & Reporting
• Ensure compliance with Group policies on budget governance, cost control, and expenditure approval.
• Support implementation of cost accounting modules in SAP and digital dashboarding tools.
• Collaborate with external and internal auditors on inventory valuation, cost records, and financial integrity.

Key Requirements

Education & Experience
• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, or Engineering; Master’s or MBA preferred.
• Professional certification (e.g., ACA, ACCA, CMA, CPA) is strongly preferred.
• 8–12 years of experience in budgeting and cost accounting, with at least 5 years in a capital-intensive or refining environment.
•Experience with refinery operations, oil & gas cost structures, or manufacturing process costing required.

Technical & Functional Competencies
• Advanced knowledge of cost accounting principles, refinery margin analysis, and budget modelling.
• Proficiency in ERP systems (SAP), Excel modelling, and BI/reporting tools.
• Understanding of production, maintenance, and supply chain dynamics in the refining sector.

Leadership & Soft Skills
• Highly analytical and detail-oriented.
• Strong communication skills with ability to interface with operations and finance teams.
• Proactive, accountable, and deadline-driven.
• Ability to challenge assumptions and guide data-driven decision-making.