Maghfira (Afi) Ramadhani

Welcome to my website! I am a PhD student at Georgia Institute of Technology, School of Economics.

I am an energy and environmental economist interested in examining the broad impact of climate change and energy transition using tools from applied microeconomics and industrial organizations.

My current projects demonstrate how technology can address environmental challenges: I examine (i) how smart thermostat automation improves energy conservation during grid emergencies, and (ii) how individuals adjust their behavior to avoid pollution using physical activity data from wearable devices. In my ongoing work, I study the impact of battery storage deployment on renewable and conventional generators, specifically in Texas electricity markets.

Before Georgia Tech, I worked as an academic professional and consultant for various energy and environmental policy think tanks in Indonesia. I hold a B.S. and M.S. in Petroleum Engineering (specialization in Energy Economics and Policy) from Institute of Technology Bandung, and a M.S. in Economics from Georgia Tech.

CV (Updated July 2025)

Google Scholar
GitHub

Contact

Email: maghfira.ramadhani@gatech.edu
Office Hours: Sign up here: Book a time with me

Publications

National oil companies and fossil fuel subsidy regimes in transition: The case of Indonesia

(with Muchammad Ichsan and Matthew Lockwood)

The Extractive Industries and Society, September 2022

Abstract (click to expand): It has long been recognised that national oil companies (NOCs) offer the means for funding and delivering fuel subsidies as a politically valuable good. But what happens when the oil begins to run out? Fiscal pressures will clearly increase, but there is also evidence that net importers with NOCs are still more likely to have subsidies than those without. A key question about countries moving through this transition is therefore whether and how the role of NOCs in the subsidy regime changes as the classic logic erodes. We examine these issues in a detailed case study of Indonesia, which became a net oil importer in the early 2000s. A series of partial reforms of FFS has followed, but subsidies remain and the NOC still plays a central role in their delivery. We find that certain functions of the NOC, such as obfuscating the fiscal cost of subsidies, have eroded. But increasing fiscal pressure has not so far overcome the political lock-in of subsidies and institutional inertia in the role of the NOC. Fundamental reform remains unlikely in the short term, but separating the upstream and downstream businesses of the NOC and changing its governance could help support that reform.

Working Papers

Managing Zero-Marginal-Cost, Intermittent Renewable Energy: A Survey of the Engineering, Economic, and Policy Challenges

(with Daniel Matisoff, Matthew Oliver, Santiago Grijalva, Oliver Chapman, and Amanda West)

Submitted

Abstract (click to expand): The integration of renewable generation such as solar and wind is crucial to achieving decarbonization objectives. This paper provides a survey of engineering, economics, and policy challenges associated with this integration, focusing primarily on the dual problems of zero-marginal-cost generation and intermittency. From the engineering perspective, we describe challenges in the operation and planning stages of electric power systems faced with increasing renewable penetration. We review the economic challenges for restructured electricity markets and highlight important implications for energy policies designed to promote growth and spur innovation in the renewable energy sector. We argue that the engineering, economic, and policy aspects of managing zero-marginal-cost, intermittent renewable energy cannot be decoupled—these challenges are inexorably linked. Hence, we describe how these three fields must work together to understand the key interactions that will make the transition to a low-carbon energy landscape a success.

Work in Progress

Digital Dispatch and Demand Response in Grid Emergencies: Evidence from Household Cooling in California's Flex Alerts

(with Soren Anderson, Dylan Brewer)

Email for draft

Scheduled for presentation at IAEE@ASSA 2026, AERE@SEA 2025. Presented at AERE Summer Conference 2025, AERE@MEA 2025, CRIDC@Georgia Tech 2025, EMEE 2025, CU Environmental and Resource Economics Workshop 2024​, SWEEEP@Georgia Tech 2024

Poster (Presented and Received Award at CRIDC@Georgia Tech 2025)

Pollution, Avoidance Behavior, and Health

(with Bobby Harris)

Scheduled for presentation at ASHEcon 2025, AERE@SEA 2025. Presented at Atlanta Economics PhD Student Symposium 2025, AERE Summer Conference 2025

Academic Presentations

2026: IAEE@ASSA (Philadelphia, PA) [Scheduled]

2025: AERE@SEA (Tampa, FL) [Scheduled], Atlanta Economics PhD Student Symposium (Atlanta, GA), AERE Summer Conference (Albuquerque, NM), Georgia Tech CRIDC (Atlanta, GA), Empirical Methods in Energy Economics Workshop (Washington, DC)

2024: Southeastern Workshop on Energy & Environmental Economics & Policy (Atlanta, GA), CU Environmental and Resource Economics Workshop (Vail, CO), Georgia Tech EPICenter (Atlanta, GA)

2022: South East Asia Energy Transition Partnership - Roundtables Executive Training, Australian National University (Virtual)

Teaching

ECON2250 Statistics for Economist (Course Website)
I will teach introductory statistics for Undergraduate Students at Georgia Tech in Fall 2025.

Miscellaneous

Website: This website is adapted from Gautam Rao’s website, which is publicly available on his Github.