Publication

Since the Juncker Commission took office in late 2014, the idea of an “Energy Union” has been a central theme of the EU energy policy debate. This paper discusses the difficulties this concept is facing as member states have made it clear that they will avoid or at least delay implementation of such a union. The authors contend that against this backdrop, it is unlikely that any fundamental changes will take place in the near future and that over the next few years, the focus of EU energy and climate policy will be on pragmatic progress in the area of energy market regulation—not on strategic large-scale projects such as an energy union.