The course explores the energy sector, the main micro- and macroeconomic challenges regarding energy markets and their relationship with our society. The first part of the course examines the main global and European scenarios, the key trends in energy use around the world, the most relevant energy policies (including the recently issued EU Green Deal), the production of energy, the behaviour of consumers, and different market structures and regulations of the energy industry (including its possible environmental spillovers). The second part discusses some of the topics most relevant today in energy economics: energy and economic development, climate change/carbon economics, water-food energy nexus, transport fuels, sustainability and life-cycle assessment, and some further case studies.

By the end of the course, students are expected to understand the policy measures, as incentives and obligations/mandates, that drive the behaviour of the main actors in current and future energy markets. They must be able to compare different policy tools depending on the policy objectives and type of challenges and market failures adressed. They should know where to retrieve aggregate data on economic trends in energy markets and be able to discuss the main methods and models used to estimate energy market relations.

A basic knowledge on energy generation systems is requested, both fossil and renewable. Basic knowledge of applied economics and statistics constitutes an advantage, but is not required.

Part 1 – Energy markets and regulation 1. Introduction to the course and to the global energy scenario. Source of world data on: primary sources, regional aggregations, energy flows, etc. 2. EU energy policies and decarbonisation. The EU Green Deal. 3. Supply of fossil and renewable energy. Storage and balancing the energy system. 4. Energy demand. Short run and long run price and income elasticities. Behavioural aspects: nudges, rebound effects, energy efficiency gap/energy savings, social norms. 5. Energy markets. Price formation, market concentration (OPEC), international vs. local markets. 6. Regulation. Price-based mechanisms (rate of return, price caps) and non-price based-mechanisms (yardstick competition/benchmarking), hybrid regulations. Independent regulatory agencies Part 2 – Topics in Energy Economics 1. Energy and economic development. Energy use and income growth. Non-renewable resources: curse or blessing? (Case studies: Norway vs Libya). Energy poverty and opportunities for renewables. 2. Climate change economics. Co2 accounting and carbon budgets. Global and intergenerational market failures, social discount rates. Estimating empirically the socio-economic impacts of climate change on GDP, health, migration. Climate policies and energy transitions. 3. Energy and transport (maritime, aviation and road). 4. Water-food-energy nexus. 5. Corporate sustainability management: does it ‘pay to be green’? New Energy Finance and innovation. Stranded assets and the management of exposure to fossil fuels. 6. LCA modelling, ISO-1400 7. Case studies with invited speakers, TBC

Applied lectures and practice tutorials with problem-sets and exercises.

Teaching material provided by the instructor. As an optional reference textbook, Evans, and Lester C. Hunt (Eds). 2011 “International Handbook on the Economics of Energy”, Edward Elgar

Modalità di esame: Prova scritta (in aula); Elaborato progettuale in gruppo;

Exam: Written test; Group project;

... The course evaluation is based on a group report on a case study of 8-10 pages (20% of the final grade) and a final exam (80%). The list of topics for the case study will be provided by the instructor. The final exam, closed-book, is based on a multiple-choice questionnaire (1/3rd of the grade), a problem-set like the ones solved in the tutorials (1/3rd of the grade) and 2 open-ended questions (1/6th each).

Gli studenti e le studentesse con disabilità o con Disturbi Specifici di Apprendimento (DSA), oltre alla segnalazione tramite procedura informatizzata, sono invitati a comunicare anche direttamente al/la docente titolare dell'insegnamento, con un preavviso non inferiore ad una settimana dall'avvio della sessione d'esame, gli strumenti compensativi concordati con l'Unità Special Needs, al fine di permettere al/la docente la declinazione più idonea in riferimento alla specifica tipologia di esame.