Research Focus: Economics of Mitigation

Bridging Economic Theory,
Low-Carbon Technological Change,
and Climate Policy.

I am an Associate Professor of Economics at Yildiz Technical University and a TTGV Climate Pioneer. My work focuses on energy economics, CCUS, and green growth, utilizing quantitative tools like Python and GAMS to assess the economic viability of decarbonization technologies and design markets for a net-zero future.

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Tunç Durmaz

Energy Economics & CCUS

Deep expertise in Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) and electricity market dynamics. Active contributor to the EU COST Action TRANSMIT.

Policy & Advisory

Contributing economic insight to national strategies with the Presidency of Strategy and Budget (SBB) and international bodies.

Quantitative Modeling

Thriving in interdisciplinary environments using Matlab, Python, GAMS, and Stata to solve real-world optimization problems.

Climate Dashboard

Live data on the economics of climate change — the core of my research.

Explore the Full Dashboard

Live CO₂ & methane concentrations · Global temperature anomaly · Carbon prices in major ETSs · Renewable energy trends

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Active Projects

Ongoing

TRANSMIT Cost Action

WG1 Co-Leader

Techno-economic analysis of carbon mitigation technologies. Leading Working Group 1 to evaluate system-level impacts of CCUS implementation.

2025 - Present

Climate Lab Community

TTGV Climate Pioneer

Working with the Technology Development Foundation of Turkey to accelerate climate technologies and foster a community of practice.

Strategy

12th Development Plan

SBB Rapporteur

Served on the Growth Dynamics and Green Growth Specialization Commission for the Presidency of Strategy and Budget (SBB).

Curriculum Vitae

Download Full CV (PDF)

Education

Ph.D., Economics

Norwegian School of Economics (NHH), Bergen, Norway

2015

M.A., Economics

University of Southern California (USC), Los Angeles, USA

2009

M.A., Economics

Marmara University, Istanbul, Türkiye

2007

B.S., Economics (En.)

Dokuz Eylül University, Izmir, Türkiye

2003

Experience

Associate Professor of Economics

Yıldız Technical University, Istanbul

2020 – Present

Climate Pioneer

TTGV Climate Lab Community Program, Ankara

2025 – Present

Visiting Professor, Solar Academy

Institut National de L'Énergie Solaire, France

2021 – 2024

Short-term Consultant

International Finance Corporation (IFC) – World Bank

2020

Postdoctoral Fellow

City University of Hong Kong, School of Energy & Environment

2015 – 2016

Tools

Matlab Python GAMS Stata Mathematica LaTeX EViews

Languages

Turkish (native) English (fluent) Norwegian (advanced) German (advanced) Swedish (intermediate) French (pre-intermediate)

Teaching

PhD & Master Level

Input-Output Models & Policy Analysis

A graduate-level course focusing on environmentally-extended input-output models, covering matrix algebra, impact analysis, and policy evaluation techniques.

PhD Level

Advanced Environmental Economics

Explores theoretical foundations of environmental policy, externalities, optimal control theory for resource management, and the economics of climate change.

Master Level

Energy Economics & Climate Policy

Analysis of energy markets, regulation, renewable energy integration, and international climate agreements, bridging theory with real-world application.

Selected Talks & Lectures

Invited talks, keynotes, and guest lectures. For the full list of 40+ conference presentations, see my CV.

Invited

ECO-SPHERE Circular Economy Workshop

"How do we make circularity work—not just technically, but economically?" — ECOSPHERE MSCA CoFund, FBE Red Hall, Yıldız Technical University, İstanbul

Jan 2026
Invited

34th Quality Congress — KalDer

Effective Productivity Solutions in Engineering — Turkish Quality Association, İstanbul

Nov 2025
Keynote

Agriculture, Bioenergy, and Biomaterials in the Circular Bioeconomy

Keynote speaker — Workshop, Ankara, Türkiye

Oct 2024
Lecturer

TrANsMIT Training School on TEA for CCUS/NETs

EU COST Action CA21127 — Economics of Carbon Capture: A Brief Intro, Prague, Czechia

Jul 2024
Invited

TrANsMIT COST Action Working Groups Meeting

WG1 Co-Leader — Teesside, UK

Mar 2024
Invited

TrANsMIT COST Action — TEA of CCUS and NETs

Workshop on synergies and differences — Trondheim, Norway

2023
Invited

WIRE's Working Groups Workshop — Moderator WG3

COST Action CA20127 — Naples, Italy

Oct 2022
Invited

International DAAD-TGU Conference on Economic Dimensions of Sustainability

İstanbul, Türkiye

May 2022
Invited

Scientific Solar Summer School — Plenary Lecture

"Solar and Economy" — Institut National de L'Énergie Solaire, Bourget-du-Lac, France

Oct 2020
Invited

SCCER CREST Lunch Seminar

Competence Center for Research in Energy, Society and Transition — University of Basel, Switzerland

Feb 2019
Invited

Rokko Forum — Kobe University

Graduate School of Economics — Kobe, Japan

Jun 2016
Invited

10th Conference on Economics of Energy and Climate Change

Toulouse School of Economics — Toulouse, France

Sep 2015

Selected Publications

The Circular Bioeconomy: Concepts, Opportunities, and Limitations

In D. Zilberman, J. Zhuang, J. Wesseler & M. Khanna (Eds.), Handbook of Circular Bioeconomy, pp. 127–157. Springer Nature (2026). Open Access.

Read on Springer
2026

Empirical Insights into Economic Viability: Integrating Bitcoin Mining with Biorefineries Using a Stochastic Model

With G. Semaan, G. Wang & G. Kumar. Systems, Vol. 13 (2025).

DOI
2025

Comprehensive technical and economic evaluations of using second-life batteries

With F. Turan & A.R. Boynuegri. Journal of Energy Storage, Vol. 120 (2025).

DOI
2025

Generation failures, strategic withholding, and capacity payments in the Turkish electricity market

With S. Acar & S. Kızılkaya. Energy Policy, Vol. 184 (2024).

DOI
2024

AI Revolution and Coordination Failure: Theory and Evidence

With B. Ünveren & S. Sunal. Journal of Macroeconomics, Vol. 78 (2023).

DOI
2023

Feed-in tariff policy in Hong Kong: Is it efficient?

With P. Dato & A. Pommeret. City and Environment Interactions, Vol. 10 (2021). Open Access.

DOI
2021

Evaluating Carbon Capture and Storage in a Climate Model with Endogenous Technical Change

With F. Schroyen. Climate Change Economics, Vol. 11 (2020).

DOI PDF
2020

Smart Grids and Renewable Electricity Generation by Households

With P. Dato & A. Pommeret. Energy Economics, Vol. 86 (2020).

DOI
2020

Estimation of Residential Electricity Demand in Hong Kong under Electricity Charge Subsidies

With A. Pommeret & H. Tastan. Energy Economics, Vol. 88 (2020).

DOI
2020

Levelized Cost of Consumed Electricity

With A. Pommeret. Economics of Energy & Environmental Policy, Vol. 9, No. 1 (2020).

DOI
2020

Intermittent renewable electricity generation with smart grids

With P. Dato & A. Pommeret. In Climate and Energy Protection in the EU and China, Springer (2019).

DOI
2019

A two-sector model of economic growth with endogenous technical change and pollution abatement

With J.-P. Amigues. Environmental Modeling & Assessment, Vol. 24(6), pp. 703–725 (2019).

DOI
2019

The Economics of CCS: Why have CCS technologies not had an international breakthrough?

Renewable & Sustainable Energy Reviews, Vol. 95, pp. 328–340 (2018).

DOI
2018

Optimal storage under uncertainty: investigating the implications of frugality and prudence

Economics Bulletin, Vol. 37(3), pp. 1624–1629 (2017).

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2017