Energy · Geopolitics | Expertise · Teaching · Advisory

Romain
Blachier

Energy, grids and sovereignty — and what they change geopolitically, in France, in Africa and across the Indo-Pacific, Taiwan in particular. I teach, I write, and I work with schools, newsrooms and institutions. Nearly two decades in energy, associate fellow at the Fondation Jean-Jaurès.

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Featured
Le Monde

"Nuclear reactors shut down: the combination of a lasting heatwave, water that is too warm and falling river flows is straining the French fleet"

Read the op-ed (in French) →

La Revue de l'Énergie

"La fenêtre de rente : la sortie émirienne de l'OPEP+ comme aboutissement", peer-reviewed journal, no. 685 (2026/4), pp. 48-62

Read on Cairn (in French) →

Publications

Recent publications

Lyon Mag

When the Rhône gets too warm for nuclear power — Lyon Mag

Op-ed in Lyon Mag, 24 August 2026: a reactor shutdown at Bugey exposes a timing problem — heatwaves cut output at the very moment air conditioning drives demand up.

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CEIAS

“Europe's chip de-risking has no energy chapter” — CEIAS

Analysis published by CEIAS: European semiconductor policy counts fabs, never the megawatts every advanced chip made in Taiwan depends on.

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EcoMatin

In Douala, electricity is not what is missing — the delivery is — EcoMatin (Cameroon)

Op-ed in EcoMatin (Cameroon), 21 August 2026: in Douala, nearly seven outages in ten come from the wires rather than the power stations — and from the way decisions are made.

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All publications →
Le Monde
Taipei Times
Radio Taiwan International
聯合報 — United Daily News
自由時報 — Liberty Times
CommonWealth Magazine
CEIAS — Central European Institute of Asian Studies
Telos
Fondation Jean-Jaurès
Le Temps
Le Vif
New Bloom Magazine
Revue Conflits
Terra Nova — La Grande Conversation
University of Nottingham — Taiwan Insight
Samoa Observer
Slate.fr
Cameroun Actuel
Défis Actuels
EcoMatin
Le HuffPost
Libération
Lyon Mag
Rue89 Lyon
Marianne
African Arguments
Hespress
Romain Blachier

About

Energy and geopolitics often look technical and reserved for specialists. My work is to make them clear and useful — for students, a newsroom or an executive team.

This approach is grounded in experience: eighteen years in energy and twelve years in elected office in the Lyon metropolitan area. Markets, grids and public decision-making — I practised them before teaching them.

An associate fellow at the Fondation Jean-Jaurès, I publish regularly in specialised journals and in the press, in France and abroad. My research covers African power systems, oil geopolitics, Taiwan's energy sovereignty, and paradiplomacy.

I have been teaching since 2010 — in business schools, universities and executive education, in French, English and Spanish. The institutions I have taught at since then are listed below; the courses change from one year to the next.

This perspective was also shaped in the field — in Cameroon, Cambodia, Ukraine and Taiwan. In 2026, a mission in Yaoundé on electricity sector reform.

I run these in parallel because they answer one another. What you see in the field ends up in a lecture, then in an article — and the article usually makes you want to go back.

Services

What I do

I do four things, and they hold together. How electricity gets produced, who controls the grids, what that weighs in a balance of power: these take a long time to understand. You have to read them, go and see, teach them, then write them down.

  1. I teach

    Lectures at business schools and universities, training for executives and elected officials, keynotes. Energy markets, the transition, geopolitics, public communications — in French, English and Spanish. I have been teaching since 2010; the institutions are listed below.

  2. I write

    Analysis and op-eds in the French and international press, think-tank papers, radio and television commentary. This is where I test what I think I have understood.

  3. I advise

    Short assignments for institutions and organizations: sector diagnosis, scoping papers, stakeholder consultation, institutional and crisis communications. Assignments in France, Cameroon and Taiwan.

    Consulting →

  4. I research

    I am an associate fellow at the Fondation Jean-Jaurès, and I carry out research on the governance of power systems alongside it. This is the slow part, the one that takes years.

    Research →
Expertise & training

Training and teaching since 2010

From business schools to corporate seminars, from elected officials training to executive workshops, I design and deliver training that makes complex subjects accessible — energy, geopolitics, sovereignty, strategic communications. My approach combines academic rigour, field experience in Africa and Asia, twelve years of executive public office and hands-on pedagogy.

Organizations I train for

NEPSEN ENSAP Formation emlyon business school Lefebvre Dalloz
2010
teaching since
FR / EN / ES
languages
Papers, diagnoses and reports
Most of the work is written: scoping papers, sector diagnoses, analysis for institutions and organizations. The subjects vary — electricity markets and grids, the energy transition and sovereignty, the Indo-Pacific, Central Africa, local governance and public affairs. Some of it stays confidential; the rest appears as an op-ed or a published paper.
Academic teaching
Lectures, tutorials and seminars at French universities and business schools, from Bachelor to Master and executive education. Dissertation supervision and examination panels.
Bespoke training
Modules built on a prior diagnosis, for public and private organizations: executive seminars, team training, thematic workshops. The content starts from their files, not from a catalogue.
Elected officials training
Twelve years of executive office in the Lyon Metropolitan area: I train elected officials and their teams on energy, crisis communications, institutional relations and public affairs.
Topics

Topics covered

Energy markets Energy geopolitics Taiwan & Indo-Pacific Nuclear energy Energy transition Renewable energy Energy sovereignty
See all topics
Hydropower & renewables Public affairs Institutional relations European politics Comparative political systems Crisis communications Religion & geopolitics Local governance Digital communications AI & education Cultural diplomacy Scientific cooperation
Background

References

Teaching

  • emlyon business school
  • Grenoble École de Management
  • ENTPE
  • UCLy — Université catholique de Lyon
  • Université catholique de Lille
  • HEIP
  • ILERI
  • IRIS Sup'

Institutions I have taught at since 2010, at various times and for varying durations.

Scheduled for 2026-2027: École Centrale de Lyon, INSA Lyon.

Culture & civic engagement

  • President, France-Formosa Association
  • Board member, Mediatone / Reperkusound
  • Author, Guillotière(s)

Contact

For training, a conference, a media appearance or a collaboration: write to me by email or through the form.

romain.blachier@gmail.com → LinkedIn → Academia → ORCID
Full resume →