Research at CEPMLP

When the CEPMLP was established some 30 years ago, its research focus was clearly fixed on the then new and booming North Sea oil and gas industry. Its early work, led by the founding Director, Professor Terence Daintith, examined the emerging legal framework of oil and gas law in the UK, and led to the publication of the standard work in this area, "United Kingdom Oil and Gas Law".

In the 1990s and beyond, our research focus shifted to the international energy scene, expanding beyond law to include energy economics and policy analysis, particularly in Asia and the Middle East. Issues of regulation and energy market reform in the UK and Europe also figured on our research agenda. Notable book-length outputs of this period were: Thomas Wälde's collection of papers and articles on the Energy Charter Treaty (Kluwer, 1995); Philip Andrews-Speed's "Energy Policy and Regulation in the People's Republic of China" (Kluwer, 2004) and Peter Cameron's "Competition in Energy Markets: Law and Regulation in the European Union" (Oxford University Press, 2002).

From 2005 onwards, there has been a clear shift of emphasis in the UK energy policy towards the implications of the return to dependence on imported supplies of energy, mainly oil and gas, and how action may be taken to mitigate this. In this connection, CEPMLP carried out a study on international oil and gas security for the ESRC in 2006, which formed the basis for a call for bids by the ESRC and EPSRC Joint Energy Programme. The interface between international and national developments has become more evident since that time. In particular, the policy commitments to make a transition to a low carbon economy have added a new dimension to this interface, whether they are commitments by UK and Scottish Governments or by the European Union or Parties to the Kyoto Protocol.

Our understanding of the research implications of the energy problems that lie ahead is one that suggests to us that two kinds of cooperation are essential. Firstly, research will be stronger to the extent that it involves a measure of inter-university cooperation. For many years, leading academics have played an important role in our teaching as part of our Global Faculty concept. We plan to extend this to include colleagues in other universities that can - and wish to - contribute to the achievement of our research goals. Secondly, knowledge of several disciplines appears to be necessary to make progress in understanding and analysing issues of energy security and sustainability. For this reason, we are working to reinforce our research by building on our institution's current multi-disciplinary character.

In pursuing our research goals the CEPMLP has always tried to ensure that the work it carries out is independent as academic work should be, but at the same time that it has relevance not only to the worlds of legal and economic practice but to branches of policy-making in which research ideas can be 'applied'.