Reading week - no lecture.

This week, dr. James Henderson from Oxford Institute for Energy Studies delivers an intense course on energy economics (MEBn5039 Economics of Energy Corporations I). Enrolment is highly recommended. 

James Henderson

Dr. James Henderson is Director of the Natural Gas Programme at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies (OIES), having taken over from Howard Rogers in 2016, and he has been writing for and working with the Institute since 2010. He produces research for both the Gas and Oil Programmes covering Russia and CIS issues as well as global energy matters that affect the region. He is a Visiting Professor at Masaryk University in the Czech Republic and has lectured on energy economics and security of supply at a number of universities in Europe and the US. He has worked in the oil sector for US company Amerada Hess, as well as spending time as a consultant and investment banker. He obtained a PhD in Social Sciences from London University in 2010. With OIES he initially published a monograph on “Non-Gazprom Gas Producers in Russia” before contributing numerous working papers on the Russia oil and gas sectors and their connection with the global energy economy. In particular he co-edited the 2014 book entitled “The Russian Gas Matrix: How Markets are Driving Change” and has more recently published papers on the future of Russian oil production, tight oil in Russia, Arctic oil, East Siberia’s hydrocarbon export potential, Russia’s gas export strategy and Russia’s energy relations with China. He has also published a book on “International Partnership in Russia” (Palgrave Macmillan) and is currently writing a book on the history of Rosneft for Columbia University Press.

Areas of Expertise
Russian oil and gas sector and its impact on the global energy economy, corporate and strategic analysis of Russian oil and gas companies, foreign investment in the Russian energy sector, partnerships and joint ventures in “weak state” environments, global gas issues.

MEBn5039 Economics of Energy Corporations I 

In this course we examine the key elements of the global energy economy and how they relate to decision-making at major energy corporations. We start with an overview of the major drivers of the global energy market and the key shifts that are currently underway due to the emergence of renewable energy. We discuss energy demand, oil, gas and coal prices, future scenarios for wind and solar and the impact of energy efficiency. We also discuss the increasing electrification of the energy system and the changing fuel inputs. We then relate all these topics to a series of example investments that could be made by energy companies and consumers, and discuss the key parameters of the decision-making process. We then move onto the geopolitics of energy, discussing the key role of Russia but also including key elements of Middle East policy (especially Saudi Arabia) and the key drivers for consuming countries such as China and India. We also look at the changing energy policy of the US thanks to the emergence of shale oil and gas as well as the election of Donald Trump as president. Students are then set a short essay question, within which they can choose one corporation or country and discuss the impact of the changing energy economy upon it.