Postgraduate Economics 2019-2020

This course introduces the student to key aspects in labour and personnel economics and how these are related to human resource practices.  It focuses on how firms seek to incentivise workers to yield efficient outcomes in the labour market.

This course focuses on the economics of business allowing students to understand the economics that underlie a whole host of business issues. The course will cover the functioning of markets, consumer behaviour, pricing, production and costing problems, monopoly and the business implications of inflation, economic growth and economic policy.

The course will cover the main elements of Microeconomic Theory together with how this underpins the macro economy, covering consumer theory, how consumers choose under constraint of a budget, to generate demands. How this theory can be used to consider the welfare effects of price changes will be considered. The problem of production will be examined to understand the supply, and the demand and supply side will be drawn together to consider market structure.  How the theory can be used to identify market supplies and demands  from empirical data will be examined.

Business Strategy covers a broad range of topics that come under the general heading of “Business Strategy” / “Strategic Management”. The course introduces participants to concepts, frameworks and models that are useful in providing explanations of how companies operate with respect to goal setting, understanding their competitive landscape, assessing opportunities,  managing own capabilities, coordinating their activities with other companies, and competing to create value for customers. The course is interactive in nature, applying a learning-by-doing method involving students taking on roles as part of a series of simulation exercises. 

This course introduces key techniques from economics and finance to allowing understanding of the basics of business decision making within the energy industries and the economic implications of key energy policies. We consider basic financial concepts such as: present value, the opportunity cost of capital and their role in business decision making in energy industries. We also consider key economic elements of markets and how the economic environment structures the way in which businesses make decisions and energy market outcomes.

This course discusses the world petroleum market in the context of overall energy markets.  The main features of the evolving petroleum market are analysed including examination of the Hotelling model and Hubbert curve.  Oil price determination is discussed with detailed consideration of the special characteristics of the demand and supply curves in the industry.  The role of OPEC in the market is examined, including discussion of the various models of OPEC behaviour and the determinants of its market power.  The economics of climate change and the place of renewable energy in the wider energy market is discussed.

This course ensure students understand why companies behave the way they do with respect to financing choices and how this interacts with financial markets, with particular reference to the petroleum and energy industries.  The course covers Investment Appraisal Techniques Employed in Petroleum Industry, Risk Analysis, Portfolio Theory and the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM)

The course will cover the main elements of Microeconomic Theory. Consumer theory will be examined by discussing how consumers choose under the constraint of a budget to generate demands. This theory will then be extended to include choice under uncertainty and intertemporal choice. Some basic elements of competitive markets will also be presented. Producer theory will be examined to understand how firms decide the quantity to be produced under the constraint of a technology. Other relevant topics, such as public goods, externalities, and auctions, will be covered.

The course will deepen and broaden students' understanding of economic models equipping them with the knowledge and skills that are essential to identify appropriate techniques for solving problems of decision making in financial markets. The module will be invaluable for students wishing to pursue a career as economists working in the financial sector and for those aiming to progress to PhD research.

The course will provide students with understanding of and ability to apply the core econometrics theory to the analysis of financial data. Alongside the lectures, the course will include practical classes that will offer students a 'hands on' training in the use, presentation and interpretation of economic and financial data. The course will underpin the acquisition of skills that are essential component of the toolkit of a financial economist working in the private and public sector and in academia alike.

Much of this course is devoted to petroleum policies.  Concepts of economic rents from petroleum exploitation and the various mechanisms by which the rents can be collected by the state are discussed, including production sharing and service contracts.  Licensing policies, including relinquishment terms, pricing, procurement, domestic market obligations, the role of state oil companies, and depletion policy are examined.  The Oil Fund concept and the issue of oil and gas security of supply are discussed.  State and private ownership and control of gas acquisition, transmission and distribution to customers are examined.  The economics of CO2 capture and storage is discussed.

Business Strategy covers a broad range of topics that come under the general heading of “Business Strategy” / “Strategic Management”. The course introduces participants to concepts, frameworks and models that are useful in providing explanations of how companies operate with respect to goal setting, understanding their competitive landscape, assessing opportunities,  managing own capabilities, coordinating their activities with other companies, and competing to create value for customers. The course is interactive in nature, applying a learning-by-doing method involving students taking on roles as part of a series of simulation exercises. 

This course will build on the skills introduced in the first semester Quantitative Methods and develop skills in applying a variety of empirical methods taught across the programme to issues in energy.

This course aims to provide students with the quantitative skills to undertake extended investigation of financial data and assist in financial decision making. It introduces various standard time series techniques such as univariate and multivariate time series modelling, unit root tests, and volatility modelling. Particularly emphasis is on intuitive discussions of the methods, and practical examples and applications are also included.

The course aims to instill knowledge but, much more importantly, stimulate students’ thinking about the major challenges within different health systems and the options for the health services management. Furthermore, it aims to take a genuinely international perspective on health care, providing knowledge of different health care systems and encouraging comparison and critique. It covers a wide variety of topics including an overview of the health systems around the world, the effects of social inequalities on health inequalities and their repercussions for social policy and issues of public health policy towards tobacco, alcohol and obesity.

This compulsory element of the Masters degree in Petroleum, Energy Economics & Finance is the final stage of the degree programme.

​There is an interest in raising the level of understanding of mathematics in the financial sector. This course is a part of the new MSc programme in Financial Mathematics and provides students with the theoretical and practical skills related to mathematical modelling of financial markets.

This course will introduce students to key techniques from economics and finance allowing them to understand the business decision making relevant to the petroleum industry and decommissioning.  Students will learn how these principles help explain how investment and disinvestment decisions (such as cessation of production) are taken, how oil markets operate, and the government's role in setting environmental regulations and taxation allowances. 

Dissertation project for MSc Law & Economics of Oil and Gas