• University of Padova

Electrical Industry: Production and Economics

Understand how the electricity system has developed over time, see what the future holds and the need to move to decarbonisation.

1,471 enrolled on this course

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Electrical Industry: Production and Economics

1,471 enrolled on this course

  • 4 weeks

  • 3 hours per week

  • Digital certificate when eligible

  • Introductory level

Find out more about how to join this course

  • Duration

    4 weeks
  • Weekly study

    3 hours
  • 100% online

    How it works
  • Unlimited subscription

    $244.99 for a whole yearLearn more

Discover how electricity is produced and exchanged and the reasons behind it

This innovative, three-week course from the University of Padova is designed to illustrate how electricity is produced, and exchanged, and why.

Understand how electrical systems have evolved over time

Firstly, you’ll gain insight into what electricity is, what it is used throughout society for and how the electricity system has been evolving steadily over time.

You’ll then assess the importance of electricity within the modern world and will understand how it is generated and exchanged among the different players active in the entire electricity supply chain.

Discover the need to move towards a decarbonised economy

You’ll then explore the new challenges and perspectives of electricity in the 21st century posed by climate change, such as increases in temperature increasing our energy demand, changing our ability to produce electricity and deliver it reliably. You’ll then identify the need to move towards a decarbonised economy going forward, and will discover the ways in which this can be achieved.

Ultimately, the course will tell you how to understand all the components of your own electricity bill, with the end result being that you’ll be able to make the best economic and money-saving choice when choosing an electricity supplier.

Learn from an environmental and energy economics expert at the University of Padova

You’ll be guided throughout this course by an expert of environmental and energy economics at the University of Padova, who has written the worldwide reference textbook on this specific topic.

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Skip to 0 minutes and 6 seconds [click] Cool, isn’t it? We hardly think about how important is electricity in our everyday life. Without it, we wouldn’t have modern lighting, and we wouldn’t have had so many things that we give for granted now, like this this or this Actually without electricity You wouldn’t even be watching this video, but we hardly pay attention to the fact that electricity is a man-made product. It does exist in nature, but they kind of electricity that all of us use is a human invention. It is produced, transported, and delivered to all of us through an organized system. The place where goods and services are exchanged are called markets. As you all know, economics is the science, the study markets.

Skip to 0 minutes and 58 seconds I am Fulvio Fontini professor of Economics at the University of Padua in Italy. I’ve been studying and teaching economics of electricity for more than 20 years now. Thinking about electricity, is it like any other good? Or are there specificities and peculiarities of the electricity market compared to necessary goods market or luxuries? How should the electricity market be designed and how do they effectively work, in the reality? What are the consequences of the way electricity is produced and exchanged for the world and for all of us. These are the types of questions we shall talk about in this course.

Skip to 1 minute and 35 seconds By taking this course, you’ll get acquainted with the fundamentals of the economic analysis of the electricity and be able to understand and evaluate the actual and future challenges faced by the electricity sector and by all of us as power users. Last but not least, you’ll be able to understand your own electricity bill, what it measures, how it is composed, and even, why not, reducing it! Follow this course on the electrical industry production and economics, it will be useful and fun!

Syllabus

  • Week 1

    What is electricity? Why is it important?

    • Introduction to the Course

      Find out the topics that will be covered and get to know your fellow learners.

    • Introduction to Electricity

      Get to know the basics of electricity, its history, and the electricity system.

    • Synthesis

      What have you learned this week? Spark a discussion with other learners and share your biggest takeaways for our first week.

  • Week 2

    How is electricity produced and exchanged?

    • Four ways to organize the Electricity Supply Chain (ESC)

      Learn about the ESC and its four models.

    • The timeline of electricity production and exchange

      What are the different steps in production and exchanging of electricity? Find out in this section of the course.

    • Synthesis

      Let's close the week with a quiz and a quick sharing.

  • Week 3

    How should electricity be produced and exchanged?

    • Optimal dispatching of electricity

      We'll describe the steps involved in dispatching electricity.

    • A step towards real-world systems

      We'll discuss how transmission of electricity can have an impact on the market.

    • Synthesis

      Let's summarize what we've learned through a quiz and a wrap-up discussion.

  • Week 4

    What will the future of electricity systems look like?

    • The role of renewable energy sources

      Learn about renewable energy sources and understand the future challenges of the electricity system.

    • Do you know what you buy when you buy electricity?

      Analysis of the parts which compose your electricity bill

    • Synthesis

      Let's synthesize our final week through discussion points!

When would you like to start?

Start straight away and join a global classroom of learners. If the course hasn’t started yet you’ll see the future date listed below.

  • Available now

Learning on this course

On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.

What will you achieve?

By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...

  • Develop your ideas about the challenges posed by climate change, understand your own electricity bill and be informed to make the best money-saving choices about electricity suppliers
  • Assess the importance of electricity in modern life
  • Describe how electricity is generated and exchanged among the different players active in the electricity supply chain

Who is the course for?

This course is designed for all those interested in learning how electricity is produced, exchanged and used worldwide.

This can include students of management, engineering, social sciences and environmental studies, as well as practitioners, consultants and people working within the energy sector.

Who will you learn with?

I have been teaching and making research in the Economics of Energy and Elelctricity since 2005. I think these are key topics to understand and shape our future, and they are also fun!

Who developed the course?

University of Padova

The University of Padova is one of Europe’s oldest and most prestigious seats of learning; it aims to provide its students with both professional training and a solid cultural background.

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Ways to learn

Choose the best way to learn for you!

Best Value - learn more, save more!

Subscribe & save

$244.99 for a whole year

Automatically renews

Develop skills to further your career

  • Access to this course
  • Access to 1,000+ courses
  • Learn at your own pace
  • Discuss your learning in comments
  • Tests to boost your learning
  • Digital certificate when you're eligible

Cancel for free anytime

Buy this course

$109/one-off payment

Fulfill your current learning need

  • Access to this course
  • Learn at your own pace
  • Discuss your learning in comments
  • Tests to boost your learning
  • Printed and digital certificate when you’re eligible

Start learning today

Free

Try this course - with limits

  • Limited to 4 weeks

Find out more about certificates, Unlimited or buying a course (Upgrades)

Sale price available until 2 November 2026 at 23:59 (UTC). T&Cs apply.

Find out more about certificates, Unlimited or buying a course (Upgrades)

Sale price available until 2 November 2026 at 23:59 (UTC). T&Cs apply.

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