This course is intended for advanced economics undergraduates, as well as graduate students in non-economics disciplines relating to energy and the environment. We will use theoretical and empirical methods to examine energy markets. We are specifically interested in how to maximize the social welfare associated with energy production and use. The course explores several fundamental challenges facing policy-makers in the energy world, where the internal and external costs are often very different, markets are not fully competitive, and engineering constrains the way industries are designed. We will discuss the idiosyncratic features of several energy sectors, with an eye to why regulation is necessary yet often difficult to implement. Within the context of these sectors, we examine the California electricity crisis, the fracking boom, the 1970s oil crisis, global climate change, and other important events, and discuss policies that may improve outcomes for society.
Course Description: This course is intended for advanced economics undergraduates, as well as graduate students in non-economics disciplines relating to energy and the environment. We will use theoretical and empirical methods to examine energy markets. We are specifically interested in how to maximize the social welfare associated with energy production and use. The course explores several fundamental challenges facing policy-makers in the energy world, where the internal and external costs are often very different, markets are not fully competitive, and engineering constrains the way industries are designed. We will discuss the idiosyncratic features of several energy sectors, with an eye to why regulation is necessary yet often difficult to implement. Within the context of these sectors, we examine the California electricity crisis, the fracking boom, the 1970s oil crisis, global climate change, and other important events, and discuss policies that may improve outcomes for society.
Units: 4
Prerequisite(s): Economics 100 (or consent of instructor)
Quarter(s): Varies from year to year; taught in fall quarter 2015 (Rapson) and winter quarter 2016 (Bushnell)
Instructor(s): David Rapson and Jim Bushnell