European Union energy policy integration: A case of European Commission policy entrepreneurship and increasing supranationalism

Abstract

Focusing on gas, this article explores the role of the European Commission in the process of European Union energy security policy development, and the extent to which the policy area is becoming increasingly supranational. Situating the article within the literature on agenda-setting and framing, it is argued that a policy window was opened as a result of: enlargement to include more energy import dependent states, a trend of increasing energy imports and prices, and gas supply disruptions. From the mid-2000s, the Commission contributed to a shift in political norms, successfully framing import dependency as a problem requiring an EU-level solution, based on the institution’s pre-existing preferences for a diversified energy supply and internal energy market. Whilst Member States retain significant sovereignty, the Commission has achieved since 2006 creeping competencies in the internal, and to a lesser extent external, dimensions of EU energy policy.

Between Amity, Enmity and Europeanisation: EU Energy Security Policy and the Example of Bulgaria's Russian Energy Dependence

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Shaping the ‘Energy Union': between national positions and governance innovation in EU energy and climate policy

“…Germany) and CEE (e.g. Poland) MS are different, the result -strengthening the Commission's competences in general energy policy issues -can be the same (compare Maltby, 2013;Tosun et al, 2015).…”

Shifting policy priorities in EU-China energy relations: Implications for Chinese energy investments in Europe

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