Energy Institute Statistical Review of World Energy 2025

Nick was appointed as Chief Executive of the Energy Institute in 2021 and has overall oversight of all the Energy Institute’s activities globally.  Prior to this he spent nearly 22 years at BP plc in a broad variety of executive and management roles.  Latterly Nick held the post of Chief Development Officer of Alternative Energy, where he led BP’s strategy and business development in a broad range of renewable technologies, including solar, offshore wind and digital energy. Through this role Nick was also a member of the BP Ventures Investment Committee, sponsoring several of BP’s venture investments.

Nick also held senior roles as VP Competitor Intelligence and as Head of North America Investor Relations, based in Houston. Nick’s early career was spent in a variety of operational, technical, and commercial roles in the upstream business, based offshore in the North Sea, Aberdeen, Algeria and London.

Nick holds a PhD in Mechanical / Electrical Engineering and a degree in Mechanical Engineering, both from the University of Southampton.  Nick is a Chartered Mechanical Engineer and a Fellow of both the Energy Institute and the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.

Nick is passionate about creating an inclusive and supportive environment for everyone and is a Board Member of POWERful Women. Nick sits on the International Advisory Council of Universiti Teknologi Petronas, in Malaysia. Nick also advises and mentors entrepreneurs in energy start-up companies.

Outside of work, Nick enjoys running, cycling, yoga and spending time with his wife, Debbie, and their two sons.

My fields of research include applied econometrics, labour markets, economic history, energy economics and evolutionary theory.

Qualifications

1990: PhD in Economics, London School of Economics

1985: MA in Economics, Stanford University

1983: MScEcon in Economics, London School of Economics

1982: AB Magna Cum Laude, Harvard University

Background

Professor of Economics, Heriot-Watt University, 1995-date

Director, CSEDA, 2020-date

Director, Scottish Graduate School of Social Science 2011-2012

Director, Centre for Economic Reform & Transformation (CERT), HWU 1997-2011

Research Fellow, Centre for Economic Performance, London School of Economics, 1990-95

Lecturer in Economics, School of European Studies, University of Sussex 1989-1990

I have worked as a consultant for organizations such as the World Bank, the IMF, EBRD, the United Nations, the European Commission, and the Department for International Development of the UK Government.

Awards

2009 – present, Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE)

2017 – present, Fellow of the Royal Society for Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (FRSA)

Research Fellow, IZA Institute for the Study of Labour

Joanna Whittington has held a number of senior roles in the energy and transport sectors and in economic regulation. She is currently a Non-Executive Director at SGN, a UK gas distribution business, at the Payment Systems Regulator and at Powerful Women, an initiative which seeks a gender equal, diverse and inclusive energy sector.

Before starting her portfolio career, Joanna was Director General, Energy and Security at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) from October 2018 to December 2022.

Joanna was the Chief Executive Officer of the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) from January 2016. She joined the ORR in 2014 as Director of Railway Markets and Economics with responsibility for ORR’s economic regulation and competition roles.  Prior to this she worked at Ofgem for over a decade where she held a number of senior posts. In her last role as Partner for Markets, she was responsible for regulation of the wholesale gas and electricity markets.