In early 2020, the world literally shut down when, amidst deep uncertainty, the Covid pandemic spread, cases immediately increased, and mortality rates were out of control in some countries. In such a health-constrained world, all major achievements in the process of completion would have to be put on hold. This situation fully illustrated the profound interconnectedness of the world, from the health system to the energy system. Yet, a year before, the energy sector, which is currently in transition, offered good prospects. Some scenarios envisaged a decline in energy demand from 2040 onwards, although the world economy was likely to continue to grow at an average rate of 3.4 percent per year. In this scenario, the demand for gas, which is currently increasing, was expected to decline around 2030, while the growth of renewable energy was expected to lead to a consequent decline in the share of coal and oil in world consumption. Will such a forecast be confirmed following the disruption caused by Covid-19?

Sponsored by the University of Houston Law Center, the Environment, Energy and Natural Resources (EENR) Center, and the Center for U.S. and Mexican Law.

Context

In early 2020, the world literally shut down when, amidst deep uncertainty, the Covid pandemic spread, cases immediately increased, and mortality rates were out of control in some countries. In such a health-constrained world, all major achievements in the process of completion would have to be put on hold. This situation fully illustrated the profound interconnectedness of the world, from the health system to the energy system. Yet, a year before, the energy sector, which is currently in transition, offered good prospects. Some scenarios envisaged a decline in energy demand from 2040 onwards, although the world economy was likely to continue to grow at an average rate of 3.4 percent per year. In this scenario, the demand for gas, which is currently increasing, was expected to decline around 2030, while the growth of renewable energy was expected to lead to a consequent decline in the share of coal and oil in world consumption. Will such a forecast be confirmed following the disruption caused by Covid-19?

The year 2020 marked the beginning of the UN Decade of Action to achieve sustainable development goals by 2030, goals that have the ambition of ensuring access to energy for all, effective response to climate change and building resilience against major crises. However, the launch of this decade has been profoundly hindered by the disruptive effect of Covid-19. This has severely paralyzed government initiatives, leaving them powerless in the face of a public health emergency that has turned into a global health crisis, arguably the major preoccupation of our time. Some 71 million people are living in extreme poverty; more than half of the world's working population, or 1.6 billion people; not to mention the increased vulnerability of more than one billion people. Today, therefore, there is an imperative need for economic recovery. Will this recovery be green, inclusive, and decisive in supporting or hindering the ongoing transition?

Many countries have put in place ambitious or relatively ambitious energy policies, many private actors have recently reinforced their commitments to low-carbon energy sources, some jurisdictions—in the context of climate litigation—have reminded States of the need to comply with their international commitments or to put in place—in specific cases—energy policies or strategies that integrate resilience to climate change.

Issues for discussion

What is the state of the energy transition currently in the context of a public health emergency? What is the energy landscape today in Covid times, particularly in terms of infrastructure, supply chain, investments? What is the state of climate commitments five years after the Paris Agreement? What is the state of renewable energy today? What are the opportunities for all relevant players today? What are the trends in terms of economic recovery and subsidies? What role will the climate dispute play for an effective transition? How will Green Bonds support the transition process? What is the current state of progress in access to energy (SDG 7)? What best practices are developing in the private sector? What are the technological options and innovations that accompany the available solutions? What economic and employment opportunities are currently emerging? What are the opportunities for offshore methane hydrates or green hydrogen? etc.

All these questions are of interest to us in the framework of our panels.

Join experts from the University of Houston and around the world in energy law and policy, climate governance, and public policy to discuss all of these issues.

Registration

online registration link

Programme

May 25, 2021 

Central Time

• 09:00-09.10 Victor Flatt — University of Houston Law Center — Welcome words/Opening remarks.

Panel 1 (09:10-10:10) Implementing the Energy Transition: Overview and Specific Issues

Gina Warren — University of Houston Law Center — Chair.

• Tom Moerenhout — Columbia University — Key Energy Transition Needs and How COVID-19 Recovery Packages are Performing.
• Bernadette Le Baut-Ferrarese — University of Lyon 3 Jean Moulin — The Place of Nuclear Power in the Energy Transition. EU Law between Ambivalence and Ambiguity.
• Salil K. Sen — Management Development Institute of Singapore — The Energy Futures Point of Inflexion: Re-nuclear with Health Assurance.
• Sanya Carley — Indiana University — Energy Insecurity in the United States.

Panel 2 (10:30-11:30) Governing the Energy Transition: Ambitions and Efforts

Victor Flatt — University of Houston Law Center — Chair. 

• Tracy-Lynn Field – University of the Witwatersrand — Energy transitions in a COVID-disrupted Africa. 
• Louis De Fontenelle — University of Pau and Pays de l'Adour — The problematic recomposition of the environment: the case of energy transitions in the face of the conjunction of crises.
• Jennie C. Stephens — Northeastern University — Diversifying Power: Why We Need Antiracist, Feminist Leadership on Climate and Energy
• Alfonso Lopez de la Osa & Aubin Nzaou — University of Houston Law Center —Climate Litigation and the Energy Transition: A New Challenge for French Administrative Courts? 

11:50-12:00 Alfonso Lopez de la Osa — University of Houston Law Center — Closing Remarks.