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This year the European Union is in unprecedented ferment over energy issues. Little more than a decade ago, energy was an afterthought for EU policymakers. But the twin concerns of energy security and climate change have alteredthis thinking.

Increased tension with Russia, Europes largest energy supplier, has come as Europes domestic energy reserves are dwindling. The voices calling for a real, robust energy union have grown louder. But these voices are working with a significant subsidiarity handicap: the EU treaties make clear that energy choices are a national issue.

It was in this context that the European Commission adopted its keenly-awaited strategy on energy union yesterday (25 February). Maro efcovic, the European Commission vice-president for energy union, called it the most ambitious energy project since the European Coal and Steel Community.

Many were calling for bold action. Two ideas in particular were floated which, while controversial, could represent a significant challenge to Vladimir Putins attempts to weaponise energy policy: strict energy governance, and common gas purchasing.

There have been calls notably from the ALDE group of liberals for a system of energy governance modelled on the economic semester. This, it is claimed, would prevent member states taking national decisions to the detriment of the EU energy system as a whole such as Viktor Orbns special energy deals with Putin or Angela Merkels sudden decisions to scrap nuclear energy or abruptly change subsidies for renewables. The Commission has been trying to do this without changing the EUs treaties, and will undertake an annual state of the energy union review, starting this year.

Politicians, stakeholders and environmentalists responded to today's energy union strategy positively but with a degree of scepticism about its real impact.

Experts say specifics in today's package could undermine the EU's 2030 emissions reduction commitment by at least 5%.

Member states can make their own choices, but they also have to comply with the climate and energy policy objectives, said Miguel Arias Caete, the European commissioner for climate action and energy. We will make sure we have the provisions established by the Commission in order to make governance very efficient. Monitoring, reporting and verification of the annual planning of the member states will be very closely monitored by the Commission, and we will propose, as in the European semester, the recommendations needed to fulfill the objectives.

Another suggestion for strengthening Europes energy hand came from Poland common gas purchasing with third countries. efcovic is thought to support this idea, but in the face of flat rejection from Western Europe and threats from Norway, the Commission has relegated it to a mere suggestion for a study.

Conventional wisdom says this is merely cosmetic, and that Western Europes steadfast objection means such a proposal for common gas purchasing will never see the light of day. However, efcovic gave hope to Warsaw during his press conference yesterday when he said we believe it will be possible to propose such a mechanism on a voluntary basis. The East-West division came clearly into focus when Arias Caete jumped in to dampen down expectations, stating that such an arrangement would be impossible without many, many conditions.

Excerpt from:
Modest measures for promoting EU energy union