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Ignacio Herrera Anchustegui

Ignacio Herrera Anchustegui

Position

Professor

Affiliation

E-mail
ignacio.herrera-anchustegui@uib.no
Phone number
+47 55583920
Visitor address
Magnus Lagabøtes plass 1. 5010 Bergen. Norway.
5010 Bergen
Room: 527
Postal address
P.O. Box 7806
NO-5020 Bergen
Norway

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Ignacio Herrera Anchustegui

Position

Professor

Affiliation

Research groups

Short info

Professor of Law and Director of COAST at the University of Bergen. My research explores the governance of energy systems, infrastructure and regulated markets, with a focus on energy transition, competition and sustainability.

Research

I am Professor of Law at the University of Bergen and Director of COAST – Research Center for Climate, Energy and Sustainability Law. I am also affiliated with the Bergen Center for Competition Law & Economics (BECCLE) and Bergen Offshore Wind Centre (BOW).

My research focuses on the governance of energy systems, regulated markets and infrastructure. Much of my work sits at the intersection of energy law, competition law and public regulation, with a particular interest in how legal frameworks shape the energy transition. Over the years, I have worked extensively on offshore energy, offshore wind, electricity markets, hydrogen, energy infrastructure and emerging energy technologies.

Before moving into energy law, I specialized in EU competition law. My PhD dissertation, Buyer Power in EU Competition Law, received the 2017 Concurrences PhD Award and was later published as a monograph. Competition law continues to shape much of my research, particularly when examining market design, regulation and the interaction between public policy and private actors.

Alongside my research, I enjoy developing collaborative projects and academic networks. I have led and participated in a range of national and international initiatives on offshore wind, hydrogen, market regulation and energy transition, and I regularly work with colleagues from different disciplines, institutions and countries.

My work has been recognized through awards including the Concurrences PhD Award, the Meltzer Prize for Young Researchers and the American Bar Association's International Scholar-in-Residence Award. I have held visiting positions at institutions including Georgetown University, the University of Wisconsin, Shanghai Jiao Tong University and the Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods.

Originally from Venezuela, I have lived and studied in Venezuela, Austria and Norway. This international background continues to influence both my research and my academic collaborations.

I regularly contribute to academic, policy and public debates on energy, regulation and sustainability. Most of my publications are available through my SSRN site.

Outreach

I am a frequent contributor to national and international debates in my areas of expertise. Both at academic conferences and seminar with presentations, as well as participations in popular press in the form of expert interviews in newspapers or journals.

Additionally, I am often invited to contribute as a guest author in different blogs and internet sites. For example:

 

Teaching

I am involved in the teaching of several courses at the Faculty of Law of the University of Bergen. In addition, I also take part in interdisciplinary teaching at the University of Bergen but often collaborate with teaching in other institutions in the field of Energy Law (these include, for example, the University of Lisbon and the Technical University of Berlin).

At the UiB, I am currently responsible for the following courses:

  • Law of the Sea and its Uses: This course seeks to provide the law students with expertise concerning the applicable rules governing the different uses of the sea from a sustainable development and multidisciplinary perspective.
  • Energy Law: Hydrocarbons, Renewables and Energy Markets: In this course we study how legal regulation can contribute to an effective and sufficient energy production and consumption within sustainable limits.
  • International Climate Law: a course fully devoted to the analysis of the law and policy designed to mitigate climate change from an EU/EEA perspective.

Publications

Academic article

Academic book chapter

Academic monograph

Book anthology

Conference lecture

Conference poster

Doctoral thesis (PhD)

Editorial/Leader article

Journal review

Lecture

Letter to the editor

Master’s thesis

Media feature article

Media interview

Other presentation

Popular science article

Research report

See a complete overview of publications in NVA.

Projects

My research is organized around a number of interdisciplinary projects examining the governance of energy transitions and complex infrastructure systems. These projects explore how legal and regulatory frameworks shape the development of offshore energy, carbon management, hydrogen value chains, energy markets, and sustainability transitions. Most of this work is carried out in collaboration with industry, public authorities, international research partners, and other disciplines, reflecting the increasingly interconnected nature of contemporary energy challenges.

On-going projects:

  • COAST – Research Centre for Climate, Energy and Sustainability Law (2025–). Center Director. 
    • COAST is a multidisciplinary research centre focused on climate, energy and sustainability law. The Centre brings together research on offshore and marine governance, energy systems, environmental protection, market regulation, and sustainable development. It serves as a platform for collaboration between academia, industry and public institutions.
  • HyValue – Hydrogen Centre for Environment-Friendly Energy Research (2022–2030). Work Package Co-Leader (WP6) Work Package Budget: Approx. €5.5 million
    • HyValue is Norway's national FME centre for hydrogen research. I co-lead the work package on integrating hydrogen into energy systems, with particular focus on value chains, infrastructure, market design, and sustainability requirements.
  • NorthCarb – Governance of the North Sea Carbon Basin (2025–2028). Principal Investigator. Funding: Approx. €800,000
    • NorthCarb examines the legal and institutional challenges of developing a North Sea carbon management system. The project focuses on carbon transport, storage, cross-border CCS networks, liability, and market arrangements required for large-scale deployment..
  • Governance Frameworks for the Nordic Energy Transition at Sea (GNTS) (2025–2029). Project Leader. Funding: Approx. €400,000
    • GNTS is a Nordic research network bringing together scholars from Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland. The network examines offshore energy development, maritime sustainability, carbon management and regional energy cooperation, while supporting mobility, training and joint research activities.
  • North Sea 2040: From Energy System Dream to Reality (2026–2031). Project Leader. Part of the NSUP Initiative.
    • North Sea 2040 explores how offshore energy systems in Northern Europe may evolve towards 2040. In collaboration with researchers from Bergen, Durham, Newcastle and NTNU, the project examines future pathways for energy-system integration, infrastructure planning and regulatory coordination.
  • ImpactWind SørVest (2022–2027). Task Leader and Responsible for Legal Research
    • ImpactWind SørVest investigates the societal, environmental and legal dimensions of offshore wind development in Norway. My research focuses on licensing processes, regulatory design and governance mechanisms that support sustainable deployment.