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The Oil and the Middle East Research Programme of the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies was established in 2009. It is dedicated to the advanced study of contemporary oil markets, production, consumption and policy. With a historical focus on the resource-rich economies of the Middle East, research on the Programme...
The Natural Gas Research Programme, launched in 2003, has become one of the foremost sources of independent academic research on natural gas. The programme focuses on natural gas within the disciplines of the Institute: economics, politics and sociology, international relations of gas-producing, consuming and transit countries, as well as the...
The OIES Electricity Research Programme was established in 2015. The Programme seeks to inform public and private sector decision-making by improving understanding of the electricity supply chain. The Programme studies the role of public policy, regulation, and markets to support the energy transition, along with implications for end-users, companies and...
Launched in 2019 the OIES China Energy Research Programme, is a center of analytical excellence offering insights into the factors that inform China’s energy policies and choices and their pivotal role in global energy markets. China is the world’s second largest economy, biggest importer of crude oil, the fastest growing...
Over the last five years, Africa’s MSGBC geological basin situated in five African countries: Mauritania, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea Bissau, and Guinea Conakry has started to attract increased interest from international oil and gas companies (IOCs). The Grand Tortue Ahmeyim (GTA) gas field development project, overlapping Mauritania and Senegal’s offshore waters, is a key example. This project is a unique case...
The LNG business is restructuring rapidly as it moves from its rigidity of the 1970s and 80s, towards a merchant market that could evolve at some point in the late 2020s or 2030s, mirroring what happened in the North American and European pipeline markets decades earlier. As part of this process, increased volumes of LNG are being traded, both spot...
The forward curve for TTF gas prices is suggesting a significant rise in prices in 2021 over 2020. With gas demand in Europe not falling as much this year as earlier thought, an increase in demand next year may be limited. With a likely rebound in pipeline imports in 2021, especially from Russia, this will increase the pressure on LNG...
The year 2020 is an important year for China. President Xi Jinping, in his New Year speech in January 2020, called it a year of ‘milestone significance’ as the country was set to achieve its goal of building a ‘moderately prosperous society’—which entails doubling the size of the economy from its 2010 levels and eradicating poverty. At the same time,...
In this podcast David Ledesma discusses a recent OIES Energy Insight on MENA oil exporting countries’ diversification strategy under deep uncertainty with the co-author Bassam Fattouh. They cover a range of issues including how Middle East oil exporters are coping with the double shocks of COVID-19 and low oil prices; what measures they are taking to meet the budget deficits;...
Following the sharp price recovery in May/June which saw daily Brent rebounding above $40/b in June 5 from $19/b in April 21, before holding remarkably steady in the $40/b and $45/b in the course of July/August, September saw prices breaking on the downside of this range and trading below $40/b for the first time since June for few days. This...
This edition of the Oxford Energy Forum assesses some of China's energy policy choices, the trade-offs between competing priorities, and what they mean for the 14th FYP.
The China Energy Programme is holding a webinar on 30 September 2020, to discuss issues raised in the latest edition of the Oxford Energy Forum, dedicated to China. The day consists of three interactive sessions, analysing China’s power, gas and oil markets in the wake of COVID-19 and ahead of the 14th Five Year Plan (FYP).
As China emerges from its COVID-19 economic paralysis and gets back to work, its priorities for the next FYP are still in flux. Can Beijing pursue its commitment to structural change, including limiting the role of the state-owned sector in the economy, considering that this is the government’s most reliable way to support growth? How will the provinces deliver growth while also providing end-users with sustainable, reliable, and affordable energy? Can China liberalize its markets, and increase the flexibility of its energy sector, while also reducing its import dependency? When considering its energy transition, is China looking to position itself as a global climate champion, or more narrowly as a leader in clean tech?
9:00-10:00 AM - China’s Power Sector Ambitions: one step forward, two steps back?
China’s solar and wind power additions are slowing while coal power plants are being approved rapidly. How does this square with the country’s recent pledge to become carbon neutral by 2060? And how can China achieve its goals of market-oriented power sector reform without loosening the state’s grip over the sector?
11:00-12:00 PM – Prospects and challenges for gas market liberalisation
The launch of China’s midstream company (PipeChina) alongside ongoing efforts to open the sector to greater competition and pursue price reforms could prove transformative for China’s gas market. What are the next steps for PipeChina and what are the challenges it faces? Will this help or hinder new entrants to China’s gas sector and what are the implications for global LNG markets?
14:00-15:00 - China’s evolving role in global oil markets
China’s appetite for crude has provided a lifeline for oil markets in the wake of COVID-19, but it has also highlighted the country’s increasing pricing power globally. With crude flows shifting East, what are the implications for global benchmarks? How do state-owned companies and independent refiners exert their pricing power and will this change as China’s oil demand growth slows
In this podcast David Ledesma discusses with Bassam Fattouh a recent OIES Energy Insight on MENA oil exporting coun… https://t.co/KFGoCBk17v
Oxford Energy Podcast – MENA oil exporting countries’ diversification strategy under deep uncertainty https://t.co/bP4ryaKAEt
Latest Gas Quarterly provides regular review of price trends in natural gas & LNG markets and factors shaping gas m… https://t.co/tPC5p9i3j8
Poudineh on how the traditional regulatory model of network companies which focuses on cost efficiency is ineffecti… https://t.co/I3kPdmLgZB
Natural Gas Research Programme 
Oil and the Middle East Research Programme 
Electricity Research Programme 
China Energy Research Programme