KAPSARC’s Acceleration Program

KAPSARC’s Acceleration Program

Dates: July 7- July 25, 2024
Time: 9AM- 4:00 PM



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About the program

KAPSARC's Acceleration Program is a hands-on initiative designed for senior undergraduates and graduates who recently obtained their bachelor’s degrees. Our 3-week program offers training in technical skills in the economics of energy and the environment, public policy, and business and communication skills. This comprehensive program aims to provide participants with the necessary knowledge and tools to advance their careers in the energy and environmental sectors.

Learning Outcomes

Week 1 (July 7-11) and Week 2 (July 14-18): Economics of Energy and Environment with Luiss Business School

  • Knowledge and understanding: Develop historical and analytical foundations to survey and assess some of the most important issues relating to the international energy system, such as:
    – Underlying theoretical notions of the energy business and energy markets
    – Development of problem analysis and solution skills
    – The opportunity to apply acquired skills in a working activity
    – Development of the capacity to use quantitative methods in leveraging data to support the decision makers in evidence-based decision making.
  • Making executive decisions: Using the methodologies acquired during the program, you will acquire:
    – Problem analysis skills and the ability to identify the information necessary for their solution.
  • Enhancing communication skills: Understanding the business and technical vocabulary of energy and environmental economics.
  • Adopting a personal growth strategy: Develop technical economic knowledge to autonomously understand and interpret the techniques of analysis of the energy markets, supply and demand, and energy project investment evaluation.

Week 3 (July 21–25): Business Skills and Communications with Fullbridge

  • Result-oriented thinking:
    – Innovate new ideas and solutions
    – Articulate a clear and powerful problem / solution statement
    – Strategize for better on-time outcomes
    – Apply critical thinking for better results.
  • Leverage data and analytics:
    – Effectively gather information and data
    – Properly analyze information and data
    – Validate information and data.
  • Effective executions:
    – Benchmark best practices, standards, and outcomes
    – Plan and execute executive projects effectively and on time
    – Outline, build, and tell a powerful story with supporting slides
    – Present with confidence in a group setting.

Week 1

  Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday
9:00 - 10:30 AM Introduction to the economic reasoning Consumer and Producer Decisions (utility vs profits maximization) Production and cost theory Oligopoly Inflation and unemployment and trade off
10:30-12:00 PM Optimization problems and their 3 fundamental elements Utility Maximization and the Demand Curve Profit maximization Game Theory, Strategic Behavior Economic fluctuations: the aggregate demand and supply model
12:00- 1:00 PM Lunch break
1:00-2:30 PM Valuing oil-related projects and policies from a public perspective: illustration with Saudi Arabia Case study: consumption function of Saudi Households Perfect competion Introduction to macroeconomics Discussion of economic policies: monetary fiscal policy
2:30-4:00 PM The circular flow and the production possibility frontier The net present value (NPV), The internal rate of return (IRR) Market equilibrium, monopoly, and the concept of efficiency Economic growth and business cycles: Case study of the Saudi economy Discussion of economic policies:

Week 2

  Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday
9:00 - 10:30 AM Introduction to Econometrics; the "Sales Advertising" case study The ECM dynamic specification Public goods, externalities, Lindahl equilibrium Pigou tax free rider Case study: The long-term KOMO Petrochemical Demand Model The Economics and Resource Potential of Hydrogen Production in Saudi Arabia
10:30-12:00 PM The Multiple Regression Model under Classical assumptions Case study: Sectoral investment analysis in Saudi Arabia The optimal Peak load pricing and the concept of LCOE Case study: convergence toward SDG's Paris Agreement, COP28, Decarbonization to 2050
12:00- 1:00 PM Lunch break
1:00-2:30 PM Inference in the Multiple regression model Hotellingmodel for non renewables The new electricity market design Climate change and environmental economics Presentation and discussion of project work
2:30-4:00 PM The extended "Sales Advertising" case study Case study: Globalization, energy security, public policy for decarbonization. The oil market and pricing strategies Climate change and environmental economics Presentation and discussion of project work

Week 3

  Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday
9:00 - 10:30 AM Presentation Skills I & Problem Solving Research and Analysis Finance Project Execution Presentation Skills II & Capstone
10:30-12:00 PM
12:00- 1:00 PM Lunch break
1:00-2:30 PM Presentation Skills I & Problem Solving Research and Analysis Finance Project Execution Presentation Skills II & Capstone
2:30-4:00 PM

Meet the Faculty

Economics of Energy and Environment with Luiss Business School

Carlo Andrea Bollino


Full Professor of Political Economy and International Economy, Department of Economics, University of Perugia, Italy.

Professor of Energy Economics, Luiss University, Rome, Italy.

Visiting Researcher, King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center (KAPSARC), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Marzio Galeotti


Professor of Environmental and Energy Economics at the University of Milan, Italy.

Fellow of the Centre for Research on Geography, Resources, Environment, Energy & Networks (GREEN) at University Bocconi of Milan, Italy.

Visiting Fellow at King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center (KAPSARC), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Baltasar Manzano


Associate Professor of Economics at the University of Vigo, Spain.

Visiting Researcher at King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center (KAPSARC), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Matteo Manera


Professor of Econometrics at the Department of Economics, Management and Statistics (DEMS), University of Milano-Bicocca, Italy.

Coordinator of the PhD programme in Economics at DEMS, University of Milano-Bicocca (DEFAP-Bicocca).

Charter Fellow of the Energy Industry research programme at RUDN University, Moscow, Russia.

Business and Communications Skills with Fullbridge

Nelson Gayton


Visiting Scholar at the University of Manchester Institute of Science & Technology (UMIST) and the Manchester Business School in the United Kingdom.

He has served as a Faculty member at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in the United States, where he was also Founding Managing Director of the School’s think tank in digital media, creativity, and innovation.

Carmen Franco


Carmen has a Master’s of Education from New York University (NYU) in conjunction with The Costume Institute and The Metropolitan Museum of Art. She has worked on exhibitions at The Costume Institute spearheaded by the legendary Diana Vreeland, former Editor-In-Chief at Vogue.

Program Partners

Who Should Attend?

  • Senior undergraduates and recent bachelor’s degree graduates seeking to accelerate their professional careers and gain a competitive edge.
  • Those with proficiency in written and spoken English.
  • Those with the availability to attend the full program.

Application process

  • To register for the program, please fill in and submit the registration application form.
  • All applications will be reviewed, accepted applicants will be sent an email to continue the enrollment steps in the program.
  • Accepted applicants must complete the enrollment process as explained in the acceptance email.
  • All qualified candidates will be asked to submit their official English proficiency test result document.

Contact Us

Please feel free to contact us at exed@kapsarc.org if you require additional information or support.