National VS International Energy Policies

Courses

ENERGY SECURITY IN ASIA

The first building block of this course is the basics of energy. Such terms and concepts as energy demand and supply balance, total primary energy supply, total final energy consumption, energy mix, primary and secondary energy resources and country energy balances are explained. We also review key recent trends in international energy during the first lectures. The second building block is the concept of energy security and its links to various concepts within International Relations theory. From a practical point of view and throughout the 20th century, energy has become a crucial aspect of international relations, and this has led to the inclusion of the concept of energy security in the structure of international security and other theories and concepts of international relations. Finally, the largest amount of time within the course is devoted to the discussion of various Asian economies and their energy systems, as well as key aspects of their interactions in energy sphere. The Asia Pacific region is home to the world’s largest energy resource buyers such as Japan, China, and South East Asian countries as well as established suppliers of oil and gas to the international market such as Indonesia and Malaysia. Asia is characterized by a rapid pace of growth in energy demand as well as increasing weight in international politics.

CHINA AND THE ENERGY TRANSITION

China is one of the world's largest economies and energy consumers. Traditional energy resources, and coal in particular, represent the major share of China’s energy mix. In 2020, China announced plans to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. Such large-scale plans to rebuild the energy system have several consequences for the rest of the world. First, it will significantly affect the dynamics of international trade as China, one of the largest importers, decreases its dependence on these energy resources. Secondly, today China is already a world center for technological development and the production of equipment necessary for "green energy" with a significant part of the materials needed for the renewable energy industries produced in China. The course includes introductory lectures on China's energy system and the place that the country occupies in the international energy system. Discussions will then explore the scale of the measures undertaken by China over the past decades in the context of the climate agenda, and the technologies that are developing in the country and becoming available to other countries. Finally, together we will analyze the consequences of China’s energy transition in terms of global energy and geopolitics.

NATIONAL OIL COMPANIES IN THE GLOBAL ENERGY SECTOR

The course explores the national oil companies (NOC) in the world, i.e. the state-owned companies from petroleum producing countries that control the lion’s share of the world’s oil and gas reserves and account for the bulk of the global hydrocarbons production. Their history, their current and future role and place in international energy markets, their problems and challenges including those generated by climate policy and energy transition, are investigated. A special focus is made on NOC non-commercial (i.e. social and political) functions and their implications for the competitiveness of an NOC vis-à-vis international oil companies (IOC). The course studies the reforms of the national oil companies that have been implemented or are currently being implemented in certain petro-states. Main aspects of their corporate strategies are described and certain prevailing myths about NOCs are discussed. The course includes 2 case studies: Latin America (Pemex, PDVSA and Petrobras) and Russia (Rosneft).

ENERGY POLICY AND INDIGENOUS POPULATIONS OF THE RUSSIAN ARCTIC

This course introduces students to current social situation in the Russian Arctic and to complex relations between today’s Arctic indigenous and other populations along with the oil and gas companies working in the region. The course is aimed at Russian and international students and young professionals who are interested in the topic and/or are planning to work in the Arctic or with Arctic issues.

ACADENIC WRITING

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