Featured Research
Energy Insights 2024
Energy Insights is a collection of articles informed by the research of fellows and scholars across the Center for Energy Studies’ programs and initiatives. Our inaugural 2024 report assesses global developments in energy markets, geopolitics, technology, and more to illuminate critical issues for policymakers and industry leaders.
Projects
Carbon Capture in Texas
Since 2019, the Center for Energy Studies at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy has convened a diverse group of stakeholders to examine the deployment of carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS) technologies in the state of Texas. Explore related research and an interactive Texas CCUS map, created in April 2021.
China Energy Map
This regularly updated map provides an interactive and comprehensive visualization of China’s key energy infrastructure. Go here for methodology.
Electricity in Texas
The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) manages the state’s power grid and serves over 25 million customers, or about 90% of the population in Texas. The Center for Energy Studies’ Ken Medlock, Elsie Hung and Miaomiao Rimmer created time-lapse videos to illustrate actual, daily electric generation by fuel by ERCOT in MWh
since January 1, 2009.
Map: Energy, Environment and Policy in the United States
This map is an online, interactive tool to visualize and highlight the geospatial nexus of energy, environment, policy and society in the United States.
Map: roadsTaken
“roadsTaken” is an interactive map and geospatial database of buildings removed and people displaced by highway construction in Houston, Texas.
Featured Experts
Middle East Energy Roundtable
The Middle East Energy Roundtable (MEER), a joint initiative of the Center for Energy Studies and Edward P. Djerejian Center for the Middle East, brings together the energy industry, diplomatic community, and scholars to deepen policy research on Middle Eastern energy and geopolitics, improve understanding of the region within the Houston community, and generate partnerships.
Recent Events
Research
roadsTaken: History
roadsTaken: Introduction
Linking Europe and Asia for the Future: Time for the JUKE Grouping of Japan, United States, Korea, and the EU?
roadsTaken: Methodology
The Energy Forum: Minerals and Materials Challenges for Our Energy Future
In this episode, we dive into the world of mining, minerals, and materials and explore the critical…
Latin America’s Hydrocarbon Production Is Key to Global Energy Security
Past Events
Fellows and Scholars
Affiliated Experts
Pedro Alvarez
Jim Blackburn
Daniel S. Cohan
Mahmoud A. El-Gamal
Peter R. Hartley
Cin-Ty Lee
Ted Loch-Temzelides
Caroline A. Masiello
Dan Wallach
Research Staff
About the Center
Core Principles: Past Findings Driving Future Research
Energy Transitions are Complex
Developments across the energy landscape in the last two decades highlight the fact that understanding the global interconnectedness of energy markets — and the factors that shape them — is growing ever more important. Technological change, economic growth, environmental preference, geopolitics, energy trade, energy poverty and energy security concerns are all interwoven with national welfare and domestic economic priorities. The future of energy involves trade-offs, and successful transition pathways will fully consider environmental, social and financial sustainability.
Energy Transitions Will Look Different Everywhere
Globally, hydrocarbons account for over 80% of all energy, and demand continues to grow. Developing economies accounted for all incremental demand since the turn of the century. Regionally, the energy mix varies widely, with economic and population growth, national security priorities, innovations in the production and use of all energy sources, and native natural, physical, and human capital resource endowments all playing formative roles in defining regional risks and opportunities. These factors also foretell a future of energy that will continue to be different everywhere.
Economics Matter
Assessments of the long-term market implications of new energy technologies must incorporate full system costs of adoption and operation. Failing to account for the fixed cost of deployment, operating costs, costs associated with maintaining system reliability and the costs of any non-pecuniary externalities can result in unintended consequences ranging from environmental damage and social inequity to financial insolvency. New technologies must avoid burdensome fixed costs of adoption if they are to successfully integrate into supply chains, or they risk falling into the “valley of death.” Co-products can provide additional value for new technologies, which raises the possibility for things such as carbon-to-value innovations to accelerate a portfolio of scalable low-carbon energy options.
Supply Chains Matter
Supply chains connect raw materials to manufacturing to delivery of final products through end-of-use. Efficient supply chain function is heavily dependent on transportation infrastructure. Actors along any supply chain must coordinate to ensure resilience and reliability, and commercial returns must be positive to support long-term viability. Otherwise, the supply chain breaks down and economic health is compromised. Transitioning to lower-carbon supply chains will require new infrastructures as well as optimization of various transportation modes and their respective fuel requirements to ensure long-term resiliency and economic health.
Energy Transitions Require Material Transitions
Hydrocarbons are critical to supply chains for advanced materials for wind, solar, electric vehicles, batteries and countless other vital technologies. Sustaining a modern way of life requires plastics, advanced composites, resins, lubricants and more. Even the most conservative energy transition scenarios represent a “call” on minerals and materials. Existing supply chains will be pressed to meet these demands. Improvements in the material intensity of current activities and the development of new, advanced materials will be critical for any energy future.
Infrastructure is Central to Any Energy Future
The legacy of existing infrastructures and energy delivery systems is the foundation for change in the capital-intensive energy market. Energy systems are large and must scale to accommodate growth and expanded access. Energy infrastructure is long-lived, turning over on a multi-decadal time frame. Emerging technologies can drive cost improvements and signal how energy sources will compete. But investment in new (greenfield) and existing (brownfield) infrastructure is the vehicle for the deployment of new technologies. So, infrastructure investment will dictate the pace of innovation and change across the energy landscape.
Sustainability is Multi-faceted
New innovations promise more environmentally sustainable energy systems. But social acceptance is a prerequisite for any new infrastructure development, and positive returns on invested capital will drive growth and investor focus. Hence, environmental, social and financial sustainability will be a hallmark of successful transition pathways. Sustainability is deeply integrated with supply chains for all goods and services, and commercially viable expansion of re-X (i.e., recycle, reuse, refurbish, repurpose, etc.) efforts can ease potential stresses on current and new supply chains.
‘Innovation and Growth’ Will Shape the Future of Energy
Innovation and growth have always been the core drivers of transition in energy systems. The two largest drivers of “transitions” in energy markets since 2000 are the shale revolution in the U.S. and the steep rise in demand in developing Asia. The U.S. shale revolution is a story of technical and process innovation, and demand growth in Asia was due to tremendous economic growth. Nations that embrace innovation and growth see the welfare of their citizens improve and their industries thrive.