Energy Economics Training Course

Duration 10 days 20 modules · 65 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Energy Manager, Project Finance Analyst and others
Fee from USD 2,200 KSh 190,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 16 Nov 2026 Course code SD-ETR-034

Before you join: Participants should be comfortable reading business cases, working with percentages and interpreting basic financial statements or project budgets.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Energy transition decisions require more than a view on technology costs. Investment teams, utilities, regulators and major energy users must assess demand growth, fuel-price exposure, grid constraints, policy changes, emissions obligations and revenue risk before committing capital. A solar, wind, storage, hydrogen or efficiency proposal can look attractive on a headline cost basis yet fail under weak resource data, constrained network access, unsuitable contracts or unrealistic financing assumptions.

This course develops the economic analysis needed to evaluate energy transition options and defend decisions with evidence. Participants examine energy supply and demand, electricity-market price formation, renewable project economics, discounted cash flow valuation, levelized cost metrics, carbon pricing, emissions accounting, grid integration and corporate procurement. They compare technology options using consistent assumptions, build financial models, test sensitivities and translate technical inputs into investment, policy and commercial recommendations. The course also addresses storage, hydrogen, fossil-fuel transition pathways, market design, project bankability and social considerations affecting project delivery.

Teaching combines short technical briefings with worked cases from power systems, industrial energy users, public infrastructure and project-finance settings. Participants work with resource assumptions, demand forecasts, tariff structures, capital-cost estimates, operating costs, emissions factors and financing terms. They progressively build an energy transition investment case during the course, then complete a final capstone review and presentation. Each participant leaves with reusable analytical templates, a structured decision framework and a completed investment-case model suited to their own sector or portfolio.

The course is suited to professionals who already work with energy, infrastructure, finance, sustainability, public policy or major energy-consuming assets and need stronger economic judgement for transition decisions.

What you will be able to do

  • Interpret energy balances, demand drivers and price signals for energy-market decisions
  • Build discounted cash flow models for renewable and low-carbon energy investments
  • Calculate LCOE, LCOH, NPV, IRR and payback using consistent assumptions
  • Assess renewable resource, grid, curtailment and contract risks in project economics
  • Evaluate carbon pricing, emissions accounting and policy incentives within investment cases
  • Compare corporate renewable procurement structures, including PPAs, tariffs and self-generation
  • Perform scenario analysis, sensitivity testing and risk-adjusted investment appraisal
  • Present a decision-ready energy transition investment case to senior stakeholders

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Produce credible renewable and low-carbon investment appraisals
  • Challenge unrealistic project assumptions and headline-cost comparisons
  • Translate technical energy data into finance and board decision language
  • Evaluate PPA, storage and onsite-generation proposals with greater confidence
  • Build evidence for progression into energy investment or transition strategy roles

For your organisation

  • Improve capital allocation across renewable, storage and energy-efficiency projects
  • Reduce exposure to weak assumptions in energy transition business cases
  • Strengthen procurement decisions for electricity, gas and renewable contracts
  • Connect decarbonisation targets with cost, risk and financing implications
  • Create consistent evaluation methods across energy, finance and sustainability teams

Course modules

20 modules over 10 days

Participants can explain how energy-system structure shapes transition investment decisions.

  • Primary, final and useful energy distinguished through balance-account relationships
  • Energy carriers, conversion losses and system boundaries defined precisely
  • Supply security, affordability and emissions objectives assessed as trade-offs
  • Energy-transition pathways compared through technology, demand and policy drivers
  • Externalities incorporated into economic choices through social-cost concepts
  • National energy balances interpreted for planning and investment decisions

Participants can analyse energy-market drivers and their effects on prices and investment.

  • Price elasticity estimated for electricity, gas and transport-fuel demand
  • Load profiles separated into baseload, mid-merit and peak demand
  • Marginal-cost dispatch explains wholesale electricity-price formation
  • Fuel-price pass-through traced across generation and retail tariffs
  • Merit-order effects quantified for variable renewable generation additions
  • Demand forecasting combines activity, intensity and weather-normalisation assumptions

Participants can prepare consistent energy, cost and emissions datasets for analysis.

  • Energy units converted between kWh, MWh, GJ, toe and boe
  • Nominal and real prices reconciled using inflation-index assumptions
  • Historical consumption cleaned for weather, production and occupancy changes
  • Baseline-year selection aligned with decision purpose and data quality
  • Load-duration curves reveal utilisation patterns and capacity requirements
  • Data-quality checks identify gaps, outliers and inconsistent meter readings

Participants can build a discounted cash flow model for an energy investment.

  • Project cash flows structured from capital, operating and revenue inputs
  • Discount rates derived from weighted average cost of capital
  • NPV and IRR calculated from annual after-tax project cash flows
  • Depreciation, tax shields and loss carry-forwards modelled correctly
  • Working-capital assumptions incorporated where fuel inventories affect economics
  • Terminal values treated cautiously for assets with finite operating lives

Participants can compare energy technologies using appropriate cost and value metrics.

  • Levelized cost of electricity calculated from lifetime discounted costs
  • LCOH applied to hydrogen pathways with transparent energy assumptions
  • Capacity factor, availability and degradation separated in yield estimates
  • System costs distinguished from plant-level generation costs
  • Value-adjusted LCOE reflects timing, location and dispatchability differences
  • Avoided-cost analysis compares self-generation against tariff-based energy purchases

Participants can assess how resource quality and technical performance affect project value.

  • Solar irradiation datasets screened for representativeness and measurement uncertainty
  • Wind resource estimates adjusted for wake losses and turbulence
  • P50, P75 and P90 yield cases interpreted for financing
  • Performance ratio links photovoltaic output to technical loss assumptions
  • Seasonal generation profiles matched against demand and market prices
  • Resource uncertainty translated into revenue and debt-service risk

Participants can evaluate grid-related constraints in renewable and storage economics.

  • Interconnection capacity assessed against generation profile and local constraints
  • Curtailment risk modelled through dispatch limits and congestion assumptions
  • Balancing services valued using reserve, ramping and response requirements
  • Transmission losses and connection charges included in project economics
  • Flexibility options compared across storage, demand response and interconnection
  • Grid-code requirements identified as technical and financial project conditions

Participants can incorporate policy instruments and carbon costs into economic analysis.

  • Carbon taxes compared with emissions trading system price mechanisms
  • Cap-and-trade allowance allocation and compliance costs modelled
  • Feed-in tariffs, contracts for difference and auctions contrasted
  • Renewable portfolio standards assessed through certificate-market economics
  • Fossil-fuel subsidies identified within retail prices and fiscal accounts
  • Policy-risk registers connect regulatory change to investment exposure

Participants can quantify emissions impacts and compare abatement options economically.

  • GHG Protocol scopes mapped to energy procurement and operations
  • Location-based and market-based electricity emissions calculated separately
  • ISO 14064-1 principles applied to organisational emissions inventories
  • Marginal abatement cost curves rank emissions-reduction investment options
  • Avoided emissions calculated against credible grid or fuel baselines
  • Additionality assessed for renewable procurement and carbon-credit claims

Participants can compare electricity procurement options against cost, risk and emissions objectives.

  • Physical and virtual PPAs compared by settlement and delivery structure
  • Sleeved PPAs assessed against retail supply and balancing arrangements
  • Contract-for-difference mechanics tested under variable wholesale-price scenarios
  • Tenor, volume and shape risks allocated between contracting parties
  • Onsite generation compared with grid supply and renewable certificates
  • Procurement scorecards integrate cost, carbon, resilience and credit risk

Participants can model revenue structures and identify material commercial risks.

  • Merchant, contracted and regulated revenue models compared systematically
  • Capture price measures renewable output value against market averages
  • Basis risk quantified between project-node and contract-reference prices
  • Offtaker credit analysis reviews payment capacity and default exposure
  • Inflation indexation and escalation clauses modelled within contracts
  • Revenue waterfalls allocate cash between operating, debt and equity claims

Participants can assess storage value streams and financial viability.

  • Battery duration, round-trip efficiency and degradation modelled explicitly
  • Energy arbitrage valued from hourly price-spread assumptions
  • Capacity payments assessed alongside merchant and ancillary-service revenues
  • Revenue stacking tested for compatibility, dispatch conflicts and double-counting
  • Cycle limits and warranty terms incorporated into operating forecasts
  • Storage sizing matched to peak shaving, resilience or renewable shifting

Participants can evaluate hydrogen and low-carbon fuel pathways using transparent assumptions.

  • Electrolyser capital costs, utilisation and electricity inputs modelled
  • Grey, blue and green hydrogen pathways compared consistently
  • Hydrogen transport, storage and conversion losses included in delivered costs
  • Carbon-intensity thresholds tested against policy eligibility requirements
  • Offtake contracts assessed for volume, price and substitution risk
  • E-fuels economics linked to renewable power and carbon-feedstock costs

Participants can assess transition pathways for fossil-dependent assets and operations.

  • Stranded-asset risk assessed through demand, policy and technology scenarios
  • Fuel switching compares gas, electricity, biomass and hydrogen options
  • Plant retirement timing evaluated using cash flow and reliability criteria
  • Decommissioning liabilities estimated from closure, remediation and monitoring costs
  • Methane-abatement investments ranked by cost and emissions reduction
  • Transition plans connect asset decisions with workforce and community impacts

Participants can assess how market rules affect generation and flexibility investment.

  • Energy-only markets compared with capacity-market investment incentives
  • Locational marginal pricing signals congestion and network-value differences
  • Ancillary-service markets reward frequency, reserve and voltage capabilities
  • Negative prices explained through inflexibility, subsidies and surplus generation
  • Market-power indicators assess concentration and strategic bidding concerns
  • Regulated asset-base models appraise network investment cost recovery

Participants can prioritise energy transition investments within a constrained portfolio.

  • Portfolio diversification assesses technology, geography and revenue correlation
  • Capital rationing ranks projects using NPV, strategic fit and risk
  • Real-options logic values staged development and deferral flexibility
  • Hurdle rates adjusted for country, technology and contract risk
  • Capital expenditure roadmaps sequence investments against funding constraints
  • Portfolio dashboards track financial, emissions and delivery performance

Participants can test investment resilience under uncertain market and policy conditions.

  • One-way sensitivity analysis isolates material economic value drivers
  • Two-way data tables test combined price and cost changes
  • Scenario narratives structure coherent policy, demand and technology futures
  • Monte Carlo simulation estimates probability distributions for project returns
  • Tornado charts communicate sensitivity ranking to decision makers
  • Break-even analysis identifies thresholds for tariff, cost and utilisation

Participants can review whether an energy project is sufficiently prepared for financing.

  • Technical, legal, commercial and environmental diligence scopes defined
  • Bankability criteria reviewed for permits, land rights and contracts
  • Debt-service coverage ratio calculated from project operating cash flows
  • Lender covenants assessed for reserve accounts and distribution restrictions
  • Risk-allocation matrices identify parties carrying construction and operating exposure
  • Independent engineer reports interpreted for lender decision requirements

Participants can convert economic findings into an accountable transition implementation plan.

  • Decision rights assigned through RACI matrices for investment governance
  • Stage-gate processes link evidence requirements to capital commitments
  • Key performance indicators connect cost, emissions and delivery milestones
  • Stakeholder mapping identifies approval, opposition and implementation dependencies
  • Procurement plans align technical specifications with commercial risk allocation
  • Benefits-realisation registers track forecast value after project approval

Participants can build, review and present a complete decision-ready energy transition investment case.

  • Investment objective defined through cost, emissions, reliability and strategic criteria
  • Demand, resource, technology and market assumptions documented transparently
  • Discounted cash flow model integrates capital, operating and financing inputs
  • Scenario analysis tests price, policy, curtailment and performance uncertainty
  • Risk register assigns mitigations, owners and residual exposure ratings
  • Recommendation presented with implementation roadmap, governance and decision request

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Energy transition investment-case template
  2. Renewable project discounted cash flow model
  3. Energy procurement option scorecard
  4. Carbon-cost and emissions-abatement analysis
  5. Project bankability due-diligence checklist
  6. Scenario and sensitivity analysis workbook

Who should attend

  • Energy Manager — assess energy supply, procurement and decarbonisation investment choices
  • Project Finance Analyst — value renewable, storage and low-carbon infrastructure proposals
  • Sustainability Manager — connect emissions targets with credible economic decisions
  • Utility or Grid Planner — evaluate demand, generation and network investment trade-offs
  • Public Policy Adviser — test policy instruments against market and fiscal effects
  • Industrial Operations Manager — compare fuel-switching, efficiency and onsite generation options

Skills and tools covered

Energy market analysisRenewable project valuationCarbon economicsPower purchase agreementsScenario modellingInvestment case development

Tools and standards

Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE), Discounted Cash Flow (DCF), GHG Protocol, ISO 14064-1

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings followed by worked numerical cases, group analysis, structured discussions and applied modelling tasks. Participants examine utility, industrial, public-infrastructure and project-finance scenarios using realistic cost, demand, contract and policy inputs. Simulations test how price changes, curtailment, financing terms and carbon costs affect decisions. Application planning links each method to participants’ current projects, procurement plans or policy responsibilities. The final sessions focus on reviewing and presenting a complete energy transition investment case.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should be comfortable reading business cases, working with percentages and interpreting basic financial statements or project budgets. Prior exposure to energy markets, sustainability reporting, infrastructure planning, utility operations or capital projects is helpful. The course assumes confidence with spreadsheets, although advanced spreadsheet modelling is not required. Participants do not need an engineering degree, prior renewable project experience, programming skills or specialist knowledge of power-system modelling. Core financial and energy concepts are established before more detailed valuation, market-design and risk-analysis work begins.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Participants should have basic commercial numeracy and some exposure to energy, infrastructure, sustainability or capital projects. Advanced finance, engineering and spreadsheet-modelling expertise are not required.

Bring a laptop suitable for spreadsheet work and, where permitted, non-confidential data from an energy project, procurement issue or transition plan. Course cases and model inputs are provided for those without a current project.

It is designed for energy, finance, sustainability, operations, utility, infrastructure and public-policy professionals making or advising on transition decisions. It is particularly useful where technical proposals need to be translated into financial and commercial terms.

This course focuses on economics, valuation, market rules, contracts, carbon costs and investment decisions rather than equipment design or detailed electrical engineering. Technical performance inputs are used to assess commercial outcomes.

Participants can use the investment-case structure, procurement scorecard, scenario methods and due-diligence checklist on live proposals. The methods apply to renewable generation, storage, fuel switching, energy efficiency and corporate energy contracts.

The first week establishes energy-market, financial-modelling, renewable-resource, grid and policy foundations while participants begin analytical work. The second week develops procurement, storage, hydrogen, portfolio, risk and bankability analysis before the capstone investment-case presentation.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.