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Energy Law Institute

Research and Thought Leadership

The Institute has a range of research initiatives. The focus of our research is to provide academically led analysis into both contemporary and anticipated legal issues. We ensure our research is relevant by working with stakeholders from across the energy sector and adopting an interdisciplinary approach that includes, for example, the role of economics, politics, environmental and energy science in energy law. Recent research projects have included climate change, fracking, energy ethics and governance.

Forthcoming publications

Energy Law Handbook (Thomson Reuters)

In the autumn we will be publishing an introductory Handbook to energy law. It will cover the principal areas of the energy and natural resources law LLM. It will be a core reference book for our energy students and others engaged in the study of energy law.

Research Handbook of Energy Law and Ethics (Edward Elgar Publishing)

Edited by Professors Malik Dahlan and Rosa Lastra

The Research Handbook of Energy Law and Ethics will provide a comprehensive analysis of the ethical implications of international and domestic laws, regulations, policies and practices in the energy and environmental sectors.

Download the Energy Law and Ethics Handbook [PDF 904KB].

State Energy Agreements (Cambridge University Press)

Dr Tibisay Morgandi

This monograph examines an original dataset of over 600 state agreements governing a variety of cross-boundary energy activities. It looks at the interaction between these agreements and customary international law and shows the extent to which customary norms, such as the no-harm principle, are reflected in these agreements.

The dataset can be accessed via energybilaterals.org.

Energy transition and the law

Our students are leading an initiative to develop a series of papers in anticipation of COP26, which has been postponed to 2021. The papers will seek to focus the attention of the negotiators of COP26 on those matters judged a priority by the students. They will highlight the shortcomings in progress achieved since the Paris Agreement 2015 and address the challenges and opportunities created by the COVID 19 pandemic.

Energy Law Institute Review

In October 2021 we published the Energy and Climate Change Law Review [PDF 1,796KB]. It has been released to coincide with the COP26 conference in Glasgow, which will bring the world’s leaders together to accelerate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

In December 2020 we published the second issue of the Energy Law Institute Review [PDF 1,219KB].

The Review is published twice a year by Queen Mary University of London.

Read the first issue of the Energy Law Institute Review [PDF 1,132KB].

The Review provides our LLM students, alumni, academics, members and supporters with the opportunity to publish articles on topics based around the research and activities of the Energy Law Institute, to have articles peer reviewed and to share ideas.

Editorial Board

  • Professor Sir Bill Blair
  • Adam Brown
  • Professor James Dallas
  • Professor Malik Dahlan
  • Professor Sir Richard Friend
  • Norah Gallagher
  • Professor Rosa Lastra
  • Tedd Moya Mose
  • Claire O’Neill
  • Professor Sir Bernard Rix
  • Gustavo Rochette
  • Maria Taylor
  • Professor Stephen Tromans QC

Interested in contributing to The Review? Contact Maria Taylor: m.taylor@qmul.ac.uk

Teaching and learning

The Institute is dedicated to preparing our students for the future and their future careers. We actively seek to provide our students with the opportunity to participate in the activities of the Institute including research, supporting teaching assistants, writing articles and preparing students for roles in academia and the energy sector. 

A teaching assistant position at the ELI offers an ideal balance between learning and teaching. Tutorials are well suited for class participation and delving deeper into course material while preparing the assistant for a future academic role. Students also learn how to structure essays and present their arguments coherently. These sessions provide valuable for feedback on (and improvement of) course design, material, and delivery. The practice as a teaching and research assistant was instrumental in preparing me to convene a module.
— Tedd Moya Moses, LLM Class 2015-16 and Teaching Assistant of Energy Law 2017-18

Yamani Global Energy Studies Library

In May 2017, His Excellency Sheikh Ahmed Zaki Yamani donated to CCLS, the full library and research outputs of the Centre for Global Energy Studies’ (CGES).

Sheikh Yamani served as minister of Oil and Mineral Resources in Saudi Arabia from 1962 to 1986 and minister in the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) for 25 years.

Sheikh Yamani’s work as a statesman to balance the global energy markets is significant.

The collection includes:

  • The CGES subscription reports: Monthly Oil Report, Global Oil Report, Oil Market Prospects, Annual Oil market Forecast and Review.
  • A comprehensive collection of CGES one-off, specialised studies including reports on the Middle East oil-producing countries, other OPEC and non-OPEC countries and regions.
  • Technical reports including Futures and Hedging, the Geopolitics of Oil, World Gas, Upstream Oil.
  • Energy-related periodicals including Middle East Economic Survey (MEES), BP Statistics and the OPEC Bulletin.

Following the gift of the library to the Centre for Commercial Law Studies, a celebratory lunch event was held at The Lanesborough Hotel in London on 16 May 2017. Speeches were given by Sheikh Ali Al-Sabah (former Minister of Finance and Oil in Kuwait), Professor Simon Gaskell (Principal of Queen Mary), Lord Howell of Guildford (former UK Secretary of State for Energy) and Professor Spyros Maniatis (Head of CCLS). The event provided an excellent opportunity to celebrate the Sheikh’s diligent dedication and contribution to the energy and oil industry.

The library is a valuable part of the intellectual legacy of CGES and we are honoured to hold such a unique collection of texts. ELI is glad to make these texts available to our academics and students.