Electrical Industry: Production and Economics (FutureLearn)

Offered by University of Padova,
Electrical Industry: Production and Economics (FutureLearn)

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

Class Deals by MOOC List - Click here and see FutureLearn's Active Discounts, Deals, and Promo Codes.

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.

What topics will you cover?

  • Electricity production and exchange
  • Electricity system
  • Renewable energy sources
  • Decarbonisation

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 and 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,
Go to Class
MOOC List is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Related Courses

Renewable Energy: Sustainable Electricity Supply with Microgrids (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of Leeds

Renewable Energy: Sustainable Electricity Supply with Microgrids (FutureLearn)

Explore approaches to electrification, microgrids, and how to harness this form of renewable energy to achieve sustainability. Learn and assess different electrification approaches from around the world. On this two-week course, you will learn how electricity is generated globally and explore different approaches to electrification. You will then learn technical aspects of electrification options via a national grid, off grid, micro and mini grids and reflect on the barriers to affordable, clean and fair access to electricity.

Self Paced
2 Weeks
Transforming Energy Systems: Why Governance Matters (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of Exeter

Transforming Energy Systems: Why Governance Matters (FutureLearn)

Tackling climate change demands profound and rapid energy system transformation. Discover how effective governance enables this. Understand the importance of governance for rapid energy system decarbonisation. Energy governance includes the rules, regulations, institutions and politics that affect energy system change. Effective governance is key to the transformation of energy systems in order to tackle climate change with the urgency that’s needed.

Available Now
4 Weeks
Climate Change Science and Negotiations (edX) EdX
SDGAcademyX,SDG Academy

Climate Change Science and Negotiations (edX)

Humanity is up against a tight timeline to address climate change. Learn how we can deeply decarbonize the global energy systems, and put the world on a 2°C pathway. In this course, learn solutions to mitigate the effects of the global greenhouse gas emissions causing temperature rise, and how to apply these solutions in different national contexts improvements.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Outsmarting intermittency (Coursera) Coursera
École Polytechnique

Outsmarting intermittency (Coursera)

Solar and wind offer clean and renewable ways to produce large amounts of electricity. They have boomed over the last few years, evolving from an eco-daydream to a major market and showing unprecedented growth rates. Yet, installing solar panels and wind turbines is by no means the end of the story. The electrical grid, which connects production means to the end-users’ sockets, is not a simple electron pipe. It is the beating heart of our electricity system and ensures its stability. Solar and wind raise specific challenges for the grid, and these challenges will have to be tackled if we want to deploy larger amounts of renewable sources.

Aug 31st 2026
4 Weeks
Net-Zero Building Fundamentals (Coursera) Coursera
Indian Institute for Human Settlements

Net-Zero Building Fundamentals (Coursera)

Interested in decarbonisation, high performance, and climate resilient buildings? Then this course is for you. Our future is low-carbon, net-zero buildings that are super-efficient and self-sufficient in terms of their energy and water use. Decarbonisation, digitisation, and deglobalisation are driving the infrastructure revolution over the next 20 years. This course, offered jointly by the Alliance for an Energy Efficient Economy (AEEE) and the Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS), will enable you to reap the benefits of this revolution and work on climate change.

Aug 31st 2026
5-12 Weeks
Sustainable Energy Access for Communities (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University College London,Centre for Lebanese Studies,RELIEF Centre,American University of Beirut (AUB)

Sustainable Energy Access for Communities (FutureLearn)

Discover energy access options to help communities move towards a renewable energy future. Explore sustainable solutions to address the challenges of energy access. There are 789 million people around the world who live without access to electricity. In addition, 2.8 billion people globally have no access to clean and safe cooking fuels and technologies. On this three-week course, you’ll explore the meaning of energy access and how to overcome its challenges to provide safe and clean energy for communities around the world.

Self Paced
3 Weeks
The Transition to the Decarbonised Economy of Tomorrow (edX) EdX
Delft University of Technology,DelftX

The Transition to the Decarbonised Economy of Tomorrow (edX)

Dive into the economic strategies for promoting the energy transition: technologies, policies, pricing, emission trading and more. How can economic strategies bring our current, fossil fuel based energy system into a carbon neutral future? According to the International Panel on Climate Change, we have only limited time left to keep global temperatures below 1.50 C and to avoid a climate crisis. How do we go about decarbonizing our economy? What are the best renewable energy sources to bring about this transition? And how do we convince investors that renewables really are the best option?

Apr 30th 2024
5-12 Weeks