Energy & Sustainability

Andrei Covatariu is an international energy and climate change expert. His activity focuses on climate and energy policies, concentrating on the energy transition process and its geopolitical, economic, and social challenges. Andrei’s views and policy analyses are constantly published and cited in international media. He holds multiple roles, working at the intersection of theoreticians (think tanks, academia) and practitioners (energy industry, international organizations, domestic), engaging with both private and public stakeholders, across Europe, the Middle East, and the United States.

Andrei is currently the Co-Chair of the Task Force on “Digitalization in Energy” and a Vice-Chair of the Group of Experts on Energy Efficiency at the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). Simultaneously, he serves as a Non-resident Scholar in the Climate and Water Program at the Middle East Institute (United States), a Senior Research Associate at Energy Policy Group (Romania), and an Associate Lecturer at the Bucharest University of Economic Studies, teaching energy and environmental policies. In 2021, Andrei co-founded ECERA, a network of sustainability practitioners aiming to produce policy-relevant knowledge, helping governments, companies, NGOs, universities, and others navigate the various facets of sustainability.

In the past, Andrei has worked for other for-profit companies, or with different multilateral and international organizations (e.g. International Energy Agency, World Energy Council), think tanks (e.g. Harvard’s Belfer Center; Energy Policy Group), or NGOs (Climate Reality Project, Climate Interactive, etc.).

Andrei holds a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in nuclear engineering, a master’s degree in business administration, and a master’s in public policy (MPP) from the Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford, with a summer project at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School.

Professor Bert Willems, is a CERRE Research Fellow and a Professor of Economics at the Université catholique de Louvain where he studies and teaches energy management and environmental economics. He is affiliated with the Law and Economic Center at Tilburg University (TILEC), the Toulouse School of Economics and a board member of the Benelux Association for Energy Economics (BAEE).

Catherine Banet (PhD) is Professor of Law at the University of Oslo, and Head of the Department for Energy and Resources Law, Norway. Her legal research activities focus on energy market design, energy transport infrastructures regulation, support schemes and financing models, focusing on renewable energy and notably offshore wind, climate change mitigation measures such as carbon capture and storage (CCS), and hydrogen regulation.

Prof. Banet has a background from the private law practice (Norway, France), the European Commission (DG ENV), U.S. diplomatic mission and academia. She is a member of the Academic Advisory Group of the Section on Energy, Environment and Infrastructure Law of the IBA, and Chair of the Board of the Norwegian Energy Law Association.

Chloé Le Coq is Professor of Economics at Université Paris-Panthéon-Assas (CRED) and Research Fellow at the Stockholm School of Economics (SITE). She is a Member of the Scientific Advisory Board DIW Berlin and a Member of the Scientific Committee Chair ETI LAB -Mines Paris (since 2022). She is involved in the university incubator AssasLab. She has held visiting positions at Purdue University, the University of California Energy Institute at Berkeley, and the National University of Singapore.

Her research investigates topics related to antitrust policy, industrial organization, and behavioral economics, with a particular focus on energy markets and social innovation. Her recent work includes empirical studies on cartel formation, information structure in electricity markets, and experimental studies of social entrepreneurs.

Daniel Duma has a background in political science (B.A), public policy (MSc) and economics (PhD) and has worked in the energy sector for almost 10 years, holding various roles related to public policy, development, finance and sustainability at Enel. Currently, he is a Research Fellow at the Stockholm Environment Institute.

In 2020, Daniel completed the MBA program at the University of Cambridge, Judge Business School, with a concentration in Energy and Environment. Daniel is also an affiliated expert of the Energy Policy Group, where he contributed to research projects on the green transition and economic growth. Daniel is a fellow of the Aspen Institute Romania since 2015.

Friðrik Már Baldursson is a CERRE Research Fellow and Professor of Economics at the Reykjavik University Business School where he formerly served as the Dean.

He has extensive experience of economic analysis from a decade of service as Head of Economic Research and Managing Director at the National Economic Institute of Iceland as well as from various consultancy projects.

He has been active in public service in various roles, including the Supervisory Board of the Central Bank of Iceland. In October 2008, he led negotiations with the IMF on Iceland’s behalf.

Prof. Baldursson holds a PhD in Applied Statistics and Probability from Columbia University as well as an MSc in Economics.

Dr. Kong Chyong is an applied energy economist and policy analyst with a strong background and more than fifteen years of experience in applications of economics and operational research methods to energy and climate policy questions. Kong’s research interests include economics and geopolitics of Russian natural gas exports, with a focus on Russo-Ukrainian bilateral relations and impacts on Europe and global gas markets. He also works on large-scale modelling of power markets, with a focus on low-carbon generation sources and integration of renewables.

Currently, Kong is a Senior Research Fellow in Energy System Economics and Modelling at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies. Before this, he was Senior Research Scholar with the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University. Prior to joining Columbia University, Kong was a research associate with the Energy Policy Research Group (EPRG) based at the Cambridge Judge Business School, University of Cambridge. Kong holds a PhD in Energy Economics and Policy (2011) and an MPhil in Technology Policy (2007) from the University of Cambridge. His PhD topic concerned Russia’s strategic natural gas export policy and Gazprom’s pipeline investment strategy.

Prior to his studies at Cambridge University, Kong was a researcher at the at the National Academy of Sciences in Ukraine.

Michael Pollitt is Professor of Business Economics at the Judge Business School, University of Cambridge. He is an Assistant Director of the university’s Energy Policy Research Group (EPRG) and a Fellow and Director of Studies in Economics and Management at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge. Michael is an elected Vice President (for Publications) of the International Association for Energy Economics (IAEE). He is a former external economic advisor to Ofgem.

Monica Giulietti is Professor of Industrial Economics at Nottingham University Business School since 2023.

Before joining Nottingham, she worked at the Universities of Loughborough, Warwick, Aston and Exeter. Her research focuses on competition and regulation in wholesale and retail energy markets, energy consumers’ behaviour, fuel poverty, distribution networks and decentralised energy resources. Throughout her career, she has frequently published in international journals and conducted research work for several governmental institutions and organisations.

Professor Nils-Henrik M. von der Fehr is Professor of Economics at the University of Oslo. In addition to numerous academic positions, Nils-Henrik has chaired or served as a member of government committees both in his native Norway and internationally; he continues to provide expert advice to private companies and government institutions around the world on energy, as well as other issues. His research interests include microeconomics, industrial economics, regulation and competition policy.

Professor Sean Ennis is an economist, author, and expert. He focuses on company behaviour, competition, and regulation.

Sean Ennis is Professor of Competition Policy and Director of the Centre for Competition Policy at the University of East Anglia.

Previously, he was a Senior Economist in the Competition Division of the OECD. Prior to that, he has served as an Executive Director of the Competition Commission of Mauritius, as an Economist at the European Commission’s DG Competition and at the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division.

Over the years, Sean Ennis has published research studies and reports published by economic journals and submitted to the European Parliament, the G20, the OECD and the World Bank. He has co-authored reports for regulatory and government agencies in Australia, Greece, Mexico, Romania, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

He received a BA (Hons) in Economics from King’s College, Cambridge and a PhD in Economics from the University of California at Berkeley.

Annika Brack is the Director for the Energy, Mobility and Sustainability (EMS) practice at the Centre on Regulation in Europe (CERRE). Previously, she served as representative for Uniper SE in Brussels and led the political affairs unit at 50Hertz Transmission in Berlin. Her experience also includes senior roles at an emerging technology think tank and the World Economic Forum. Annika is a UNAOC and WEF Global Leadership Fellow, with a background in international studies in Paris, Washington D.C., and Berlin.

Giulia De Nardin is part of the CERRE Energy, Mobility & Sustainability (EMS) practice, supporting CERRE members and European policymakers on EMS policy and regulatory issues. Before joining CERRE, she worked as a Schuman trainee at the European Parliamentary Research Service (DG EPRS), and held research-related positions in an NGO, a think tank, and as a UN Volunteer. She is currently also a Youth Ambassador for the ONE Campaign.

Giulia holds a BA in Applied Foreign Languages from Sorbonne Université and a double Master’s Degree in International Relations and Political Science with a Major in Diplomacy from LUISS University and Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB).