Stanford University

Energy

This image is having trouble loading!FSI researchers examine the role of energy sources from regulatory, economic and societal angles. The Program on Energy and Sustainable Development (PESD) investigates how the production and consumption of energy affect human welfare and environmental quality. Professors assess natural gas and coal markets, as well as the smart energy grid and how to create effective climate policy in an imperfect world. This includes how state-owned enterprises – like oil companies – affect energy markets around the world. Regulatory barriers are examined for understanding obstacles to lowering carbon in energy services. Realistic cap and trade policies in California are studied, as is the creation of a giant coal market in China.

Victor to teach political economy of energy class again this winter

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David G. Victor
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PESD Director David G. Victor will be teaching "The Political Economy of Energy Policy" in the upcoming winter quarter. The class will introduce students to the major theoretical frameworks used by political scientists, sociologists, economists, and other intellectual disciplines to understand how societies design and implement public policies related to energy, and how the energy industry responds. Topics covered will include theories of the state, monopoly and regulation, public choice, organizational behavior, international agreements, and innovation.  The class will apply these theories to major current and historical issues in energy policy, such as ethanol, climate change, energy security, the role of national oil companies in the world oil market, the functioning of OPEC, and the California electricity crisis.

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Rai reports on the positive impact of India's energy reforms

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A review of India's recent energy reforms since 1998.

In an article published by UPenn's Center for the Advanced Study of India (CASI), PESD research fellow Dr. Varun Rai reports on the positive impact that India's major energy policy reforms have had since 1998. Rai asserts that these policies are the right platform for India's energy future: they will provide enough transparency and the right economic signals leading to the emergence of an efficient energy system in India. He also draws particular attention to the organizational instability facing the operationally-constrained state-owned firms that are exposed to market competition and to the dangers of decision-making without due consideration of the global dimensions of energy.

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PESD Annual Meeting

» Annual Meeting 2008 Materials (password protected)

PESD's 2008 Annual Review Meeting, Reconciling Coal and Energy Security, will be held October 29-30, 2008 at Stanford University. The meeting is PESD's annual forum in which to create a wide-ranging conversation around our research and obtain feedback to shape our research agenda going forward.

PESD is a growing international research program that works on the political economy of energy. We study the political, legal, and institutional factors that affect outcomes in global energy markets. Much of our research has been based on field studies in developing countries including China, India, Brazil, South Africa, and Mexico.

At present, PESD is active in four major areas: climate change policy, energy and development, the global coal market, and the role of national oil companies.

The workshop will begin on Wednesday, October 29 at 8:30 am with registration and breakfast followed by a welcome and an overview of PESD's research activities. This year's Annual Meeting will have a concerted focus on carbon markets, regulation, and carbon capture and storage models. There will be a session in the morning that will discuss and explore ways to engage developing countries on climate change. New to this year's meeting will be a reception and poster session at the conclusion of the first day. We also anticipate discussion of areas where PESD can better collaborate with other institutions. The meeting ends at 1pm on Thursday, October 30.

Annual Meeting invitees can access the complete agenda and subsequent presentation files by logging on with your password.

Bechtel Conference Center

Conferences

Reducing Proliferation Risk

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PESD senior fellow and Nobel laureate in Physics, Burton Richter, explains why an inclusive internationalization policy of both ends of the nuclear fuel-cycle can provide much needed carbon-free energy while limiting the potential for the proliferation of nuclear weapons. He insists that the nuclear proliferation problem can be remedied by a tightly monitored program through international policy and diplomacy where incentives to tame proliferation are increased, inspections are more rigorous, and a sanctions program is agreed upon and adhered to.

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Demise of the Standard Model for Power Sector Reform and the Emergence of Hybrid Power Markets

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Following earlier reforms in the power sectors of industrialized countries and emerging markets (e.g. Chile), developing countries were encouraged to unbundle their electricity industries and to introduce competition and private sector participation. This paper highlights the developments that led to how power sector reform came to be defined as a standard model and theoretical framework in its ownright, and how the model was used prescriptively in many developing countries. However, we also show that, after more than 15 years of reform efforts, this new industry model has not fully taken root in most developing countries. Finally, we identify and characterize the emergence of new hybrid power markets, which pose fresh performance and investment challenges.

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Energy Policy
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Gang He

616 Serra St.
E420 Encina Hall
Stanford, CA 94305

(650) 725-4249 (650) 724-1717
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Gang He's work focuses on China's energy and climate change policy, carbon capture and sequestration, domestic coal and power sectors and their key role in both the global coal market and in international climate policy framework.  He also studies other issues related to energy economics and modeling, global climate change and the development of lower-carbon energy sources. 

Prior to joining PESD, he was with the World Resources Institute as a Cynthia Helms Fellow.  He has also worked for the Global Roundtable on Climate Change of the Earth Institute at Columbia University. With his experiences both in US and China, he has been actively involved in the US-China collaboration on energy and climate change. 

Mr. He received an M.A. from Columbia University on Climate and Society, B.S. from Peking University on Geography, and he is currently doing a PhD in the Energy and Resources Group at UC Berkeley.

Paasha Mahdavi

Encina Hall E418
Stanford, CA 94305

(858) 243-1840 (650) 724-1717
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Research Associate
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Paasha Mahdavi is a second-year M.A. candidate in Stanford's Ford Dorsey School for International Policy Studies.  His work is focused on the study of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) and the comparison of revenue streams across national oil companies.  His research interests include the development of natural gas markets in Central Asia and Iran, the Iranian oil industry, and the Middle Eastern and North African oil and gas market.  He is also interested in the comparative politics of the broader Muslim world and the study of climate change in the Middle East.  After completion of his M.A., Paasha plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Political Science.

Peter A. Nolan

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Peter A. Nolan is contributing to research into the strategies and performance of national oil companies with a particular focus on industry structure.

Before joining PESD Mr Nolan worked for 35 years in the oil exploration industry.  This included several years in the seismic service industry and 25 years with BP in a range of roles including basin and prospect evaluation, commercial, strategic and business development roles.  Recent posts had a focus on the countries of the Former Soviet Union and the Middle East.

He obtained his BSc in geology from Southampton University in 1973.

Xander Slaski

Encina Hall E418
Stanford, CA 94305

(571) 235-7333
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Xander Slaski previously led the low-income energy services research platform at the Program on Energy and Sustainable Development at Stanford University's Freeman Spogli Insititute for International Studies. The Program, launched in September 2001, focuses on international frameworks for climate change mitigation, the role of state-controlled oil and gas companies in the world's hydrocarbon markets, the emerging global market for coal, and energy services for the world's poor.

Xander's research at PESD focused on strategies to hasten development by finding methods to more effectively provide energy services in developing countries. A major research focus was on micro-level development and household energy, such as how to connect the rural poor to electricity and improved cooking methods. His broader research interests include the impact of political forces and institutions on development.

Mr. Slaski holds a B. A. from Stanford University in Economics and International Relations, and completed his honors thesis as part of the Goldman honors program in environmental science, technology, and policy. He speaks Spanish and Portuguese.

The Future of Natural Gas Consumption in Beijing, Guangdong and Shanghai: An Assessment Utilizing MARKAL

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Natural gas could possibly become a significant portion of the future fuel mix in China. However, there is still great uncertainty surrounding the size of this potential market and therefore its impact on the global gas trade. In order to identify some of the important factors that might drive natural gas consumption in key demand areas in China, we focus on three regions: Beijing, Guangdong, and Shanghai. Using the economic optimization model MARKAL, we initially assume that the drivers are government mandates of emissions standards, reform of the Chinese financial structure, the price and available supply of natural gas, and the rate of penetration of advanced power generating and end-use. The results from the model show that the level of natural gas consumption is most sensitive to policy scenarios, which strictly limit SO2 emissions from power plants. The model also revealed that the low cost of capital for power plants in China boosts the economic viability of capital-intensive coal-fired plants. This suggests that reform within the financial sector could be a lever for encouraging increased natural gas use.

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David G. Victor
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