Energy Security Conference

Date:       Friday, 22 May 2009
Time:      8.30 am to 5.00 pm
Venue:   Orchard Hotel 
                Nutmeg Room 

Registration is free. Please email the attached reply form  to esilyyj@nus.edu.sg  by 18 May 2009.

Abstract

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Modern living is highly energy dependent.  It would grind to a halt if, for whatever reason, energy supplies were disrupted and/or rendered unaffordable. The purpose of ESI’s first Energy Security Conference is to update participants on traditional energy security issues such as protection of critical infrastructure and trends in energy nationalism. It will also examine the evolving energy-water nexus and current economic  issues that potentially threaten the energy security of Asia, Europe and the Middle East.  How much government involvement should there be in this crucial sector? Can a country rely on market forces to ensure all aspects of secure energy supplies? We are living in extremely interesting, but challenging times vis-à-vis energy security. This day-long conference will expose the frailties in Asian regional energy systems and beyond.

Speakers

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Mr. Anthony D'Agostino  is a Research Fellow at the Institute of Water Policy, based at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore.  His current research focuses on the use of system dynamics in the water sector to better understand the intersection of water, food, energy and climate systems and how policymakers can develop appropriate policy responses.  Anthony previously worked for the Greenhouse Gas Protocol at the World Resources Institute and UNEP-ROAP in Bangkok, as well as for various sustainable development organizations in India, Australia and New Zealand.  He holds a Masters in Public Policy (MPP) with a specialization in Social and Environmental Policy from the National University of Singapore and a BA in Philosophy (Minor: Physics) from Rutgers University.

Mr. Amos Bromhead  is a Senior Energy Analyst at the Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA). His focus is economic analysis of energy policy. He is a contributing author to the  World Energy Outlook series which is the flagship publication of the IEA and recognised as the most authoritative source for energy analysis and projections. Before taking up his current post in October 2008, Amos served  three years as Special Advisor to the Executive Director of the IEA.  Prior to joining the IEA, Mr.Bromhead worked as an analyst within the Petroleum and International Energy Division of the Australian Department of Industry, Tourism and Resources. Amos holds a Bachelor of Engineering from the University of Queensland and a Masters in Management  from the Australian National University.

Dr Alvin Chew  is a Research Fellow at the Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. He is currently researching energy security issues and coordinating the programme on Science, Technology and Security. The programme is multidisciplinary in nature, and draws expertise from the scientific and engineering communities in NTU to work with social scientists in addressing international security concerns. He will be teaching the MSc course module, Technology and Strategic Policy, at RSIS. He is also actively involved in the Track 2 level meetings of the Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia Pacific (CSCAP) Study Group on Energy Security. He had previously worked in the areas of revolution in military affairs and military transformation, and taught at the Singapore Armed Forces Military Institute. Prior to joining RSIS, he was employed at the Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA) where he conducted studies on the protection of critical infrastructure.

Dr Chang Youngho  is an Assistant Professor of Economics in the Division of Economics and 
the Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. He is also an Adjunct Senior Fellow at the Energy Studies Institute (ESI), National University of Singapore. Apart from academic affiliations, he is a member of the R&D Workgroup and Household Subcommittee for the National Climate Change Committee (N3C). Dr Chang specializes in the economics of climate change, the economics of renewable resources, energy and security, oil and economy, and electricity market deregulation. His current research interests are oil price fluctuations and macroeconomic performances, the economics of energy security, the transition of resource use in an economy, the economics of sustainability, energy use and climate change, and the effectiveness of a new market structure in a deregulated electricity market.

Ms. Ruchika Chawla  is an Associate Fellow and Area Convenor in the  Centre for Competition 
Promotion for Regulatory Studies and Governance Division of The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) in New Delhi. She has a  Masters in Business Economics from  Delhi University. Over the last five years she has been involved in a number of studies pertaining to energy reforms, regulations, regional trade and security at  both the country and regional levels. She has worked extensively on the energy security issues plaguing the South Asian region. In a recently concluded study for the Asian Development Bank and the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation(SAARC) Secretariat, she was involved in identification of multilateral energy trade and cooperation options to address the energy security concerns of the region through the combined efforts of the majority of member states. She co-authored ‘Petroleum Pricing in India: Balancing Efficiency and Equity”, which reviews the present pricing mechanism  and suggests alternative measures for bringing  efficiency and equity into  the petroleum sector.

Dr. Tilak K. Doshi  is an industry expert with over 15 years of international work experience in leading oil and gas companies. Among his prior executive management positions, Dr. Doshi was appointed by the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (a Dubai World company) as Executive Director for Energy in June 2005  to specifically drive regional market and product development for the Dubai oil, gas and petrochemical sectors. Prior to joining DMCC, Dr.Doshi worked as a Consultant for Saudi Aramco in its crude marketing and corporate planning department. He has also held senior positions as Director of Industry Analysis at the Atlantic Richfield Company in Los Angeles, and Chief Energy Economist at the Unocal Corporation's Asia office in Singapore. Currently, Dr. Doshi is Senior Advisor to the Board of Falcon Equity Advisors GmbH, a financial advisory and private equity firm with headquarters in Switzerland and offices in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. He is also consultant to a number of ventures, including LNG businesses in the Arabian Gulf and Asia, carbon emission reduction programs and in mergers and acquisition initiatives in the upstream oil and gas sectors of the Middle East, North Africa and  Southeast Asia.

Dr S. Narayan  spent nearly four decades in India’s public service  starting in 1965. His last appointment was  Economic Adviser to the Prime Minister (2003-2004). Prior to this,  he was  Finance and Economic Affairs Secretary, and Secretary in the Departments of Revenue, Petroleum, Industrial Development and Coal since 1997. As Secretary for Petroleum and Natural Gas, he was responsible for policy formulation and implementation in the hydrocarbon sector. In the Ministry of Finance, his responsibilities included the formulation of macro-economic policy for the government, tariff and taxation policies as well as initiatives for modernising the capital markets. His special interests include public finance, energy policy, governance issues and international trade. Dr Narayan is a Visiting Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of South Asian Studies (ISAS), National University of Singapore and a professor at Indira Gandhi National University, Delhi. He writes frequent newspaper commentaries. Dr Narayan obtained his PhD from the Indian Institute of Technology in New Delhi, his MPhil (Development Economics) from Cambridge University and  Master of Business Management (Finance) from the University of Adelaide. He also has an MSc (Physics) from the University of Madras (Madras Christian College).

Mr. Geoffrey Pakiam  is a Senior Political Analyst at the Energy Studies Institute (ESI), National University of Singapore. His interests include the political economy of energy in Southeast Asia, state-society relations in energy-producing regions and the role of energy in development. Geoff most recently served as Senior Researcher at the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Singapore.  Prior to this, he worked closely with indigenous nongovernmental organisations in both Uganda and Australia on a number of capacity-building projects in remote communities. He holds a BA in Social and Political Sciences from Cambridge University and a Master's (Distinction) in Development Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.

Dr. Hooman Peimani  is a Principal Fellow at the Energy Studies Institute (ESI), National University of Singapore. Drawing on his years of work experience with academic, non-academic, private, public, national and international institutions in North America, Europe and West Asia, including UN agencies, he specializes in energy security, particularly relating to South and West Asia. Having over 20 years of research experience, his extensive publications include books, chapters in books, journal/newspaper articles, government/UN documents/reports and book reviews. He has also contributed as an expert to the publications of many news agencies (e.g., Reuters and United Press International) and/or been quoted by them.  Since 1997, in the capacity of an expert in energy and security, he has made regular contributions to the programs and publications of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and the programs of Radio France Internationale and Deutsche Welle.

Mr. Benjamin Tang  is a Senior Economic Analyst at the Energy Studies Institute (ESI), National University of Singapore. His current research interests include modelling energy demand in Singapore and analysing the relationship between oil prices and macro-economic indicators. Prior to this, he was employed at Credit Suisse Singapore in a middle office role, supporting the Japan fixed income traders in a risk management and financial controlling capacity, and was managing the smaller and deployed extension of the team. He earlier served internships at Shell Chemicals and the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

Dr Elspeth Thomson  is a Senior Fellow at the Energy Studies Institute (ESI), National University of Singapore. She received her PhD from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. Her main research interests are Asian energy security and economics. She authored The Chinese Coal Industry: An Economic History (London and New York: RoutledgeCurzon, 2003). An edited volume, China’s Science & Technology Sector and the Forces of Globalisation, came out in 2008 (World Scientific). Others,  Energy Conservation in East Asia: Towards Greater Energy Security  (World Scientific)  and Energy Efficiency Policy Development in Southeast Asia and Beyond (Stallion Press), will appear in 2009. She has published articles concerning various aspects of Asia’s energy sector in Applied Energy, Pacific and Asian Journal of Energy, Journal of Applied Statistics,  The China Quarterly,  China Review, East Asia: An International Quarterly, and Perspectives. Through the 1990s she taught at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver and Lingnan University in Hong Kong. Before joining ESI, she was a Fellow at the East Asian Institute (EAI), National University of Singapore, for six years where she specialised in China’s energy economics and security. She has co-edited EAI’s internationally refereed journal, China: An International Journal, since 2003.

ENERGY STUDIES INSTITUTE 

Energy Security Conference  

Programme

22 May 2009

Orchard Hotel, Nutmeg Room

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