4.0

credits

Average Course Rating

Clean energy technologies are now cheaper than fossil sources of electricity in many parts of the global economy. Despite the rapidly decreasing capital costs associated with these technologies, the clean energy transition is not progressing at a pace aligned with the climate goals outlined in the Paris Agreement. This course examines the energy transition through the lens of structural transformation, involving the significant reallocation of economic activity from one energy system to another. Comparative analyses are drawn between the ongoing transition and historical instances of structural change, ranging from late economic development to past energy revolutions like the invention of the steam engine during the industrial revolution, and more recent shifts from manufacturing to service-based economies. By investigating coordination challenges, market failures, and economic frictions linked to structural change, the course identifies policy interventions to expedite the transition. Emphasizing wind, solar, and battery storage technologies, the curriculum follows the trajectory of clean energy innovations from the laboratory to the market. It encompasses the political economy of clean energy innovation, government initiatives to establish domestic clean energy supply chains, challenges on both supply and demand sides in constructing markets for clean energy technologies and explores land and labor market frictions that impede the pace of change.