In 1977, at the Xth World Energy Conference in Istanbul, the Conservation Commission presented an initial global study of future trends in energy supply and demand up to 2020. This pioneering work was the origin of large scale global energy surveys. At the Munich Conference of 1980, the Commission made more thorough analyses by concentrating particularly on the specific behaviour of Third World Nations. Today, in New Delhi, in keeping with the tradition established by its previous surveys, the Commission is developing a new global study, the originality of which lies in the procedure adopted in its production. Rejecting centralised forecasting models which have almost exclusively dominated the minds of researchers, the Commission recommended a decen tralised method of approach which was totally different both in its basic principles and in its implementation. Essentially, the inhabitants of the regions were to be given the opportunity of expressing their own views on their energy future, rather than imposing on them an external model and therefore external results.

In 1977, at the Xth World Energy Conference in Istanbul, the Conservation Commission presented an initial global study of future trends in energy supply and demand up to 2020. This pioneering work was the origin of large scale global energy surveys. At the Munich Conference of 1980, the Commission made more thorough analyses by concentrating particularly on the specific behaviour of Third World Nations. Today, in New Delhi, in keeping with the tradition established by its previous surveys, the Commission is developing a new global study, the originality of which lies in the procedure adopted in its production. Rejecting centralised forecasting models which have almost exclusively dominated the minds of researchers, the Commission recommended a decen tralised method of approach which was totally different both in its basic principles and in its implementation. Essentially, the inhabitants of the regions were to be given the opportunity of expressing their own views on their energy future, rather than imposing on them an external model and therefore external results.

From its very beginnings, the Conservation Commission has devoted a large part of its research to long-term energy analyses. Following the first oil shock, it undertook its earliest work on the world demand-supply equilib rium for the period 2000-2020, the results of which were presented to the 10th Congress of the Conference at Istanbul in 1977. Since then, its analyses have become ever deeper, ever more various. In 1980, the stress was on the future for the Third World, while in 1983, its forecasts set out a new panorama for the world and for the main regions in the period 2000-2020. Therefore, what was more natural than that the Conservation Commission should bring its interest to bear on one of the major aspects of energy strategy: the comparison of future needs not merely with the fluctuations of supply but also with stocks of reserves. The problem, of course, had not been entirely ignored, but the field tended to be one in which intuitions and sketchy proofs were more readily available than systematic and comprehen sive analysis.

Summarizing a workshop on energy systems planning for developing countries, this workshop provides a fair survey on the state-of-the-art planning approaches and methodologies including some basic introduction into mathematical modelling, without going into technical detail applied operations research methods suitable for developing countries are presented. Conventional planning methods complement the workshop material. It provides a comprehensive survey on energy planning for educational purposes.