LOG904-183 Energy Transitions (Autumn 2024)

The course gives a comprehensive overview of the energy sources, the global energy landscape, and the ongoing shift towards renewable and sustainable sources of energy. Students will learn about the historical, political, economic, technological, and logistical factors that drive the energy transition, and will be equipped with the skills and theoretical tools necessary to analyze logistical challenges in an energy transitions environment and to evaluate the various paths toward a low-carbon energy future.

During the course, students will explore energy transition scenarios and strategies, and analyze energy profiles and energy transition potential, together with logistics of energy generation and energy supply of different countries and regions.

Some energy mix planning cases on example of electricity market in Brazil will be explored, with the impacts on hydro sources versus fossil sources and versus the new non-controllable and low-cost production renewables such as wind and solar.

During the course, a comprehensive overview of the forecasting models that can be used to plan renewable sources on examples from Brazil will be presented. Also, students will understand how climate changes affect generation of each energy source and how they can be considered in the forecasting models.

Knowledge:

After completing the course, the students will know global energy landscape, energy systems and energy transitions scenarios; factors, tools, and trends in a low-carbon energy transition environment.

Skills:

After completing the course, the students will be able to

• Evaluate the role of energy in the global economy and understand the factors driving energy transitions.
• Apply to real-world cases knowledge of energy systems and energy transitions, and critically review them.

General competence:

After completing the course, the students will be able to

• Demonstrate a critical and interdisciplinary approach to studying energy transitions and their impact on society and the environment.
• Communicate effectively and persuasively about energy transitions, including the political, economic, and technical dimensions of energy systems, and their logistical challenges.

• Form of assessment: Home exam without presentation
• Proportion: 100 %
• Duration: 4.5 days (published on Tuesday 15:00, submission deadline Saturday 23:59)
• Grouping: Individual only, discussion in groups is welcome
• Grading scale: Letter (A - F)
• Support material: Recommended course literature (books, peer-reviewed articles and internet sources)