Memo to the new Commissioner for Energy

In this paper Resident Scholar Georg Zachmann analyses the recent developments in European energy policy and looks at the upcoming challenges in this area making a number of recommendations to the newly appointed Energy Commissioner. Zachmann notes that while liberalising energy markets and combating climate change will remain top priorities in the next term of office, securing energy supplies and energy price issues might temporarily lose some appeal due to the crisis-induced energy demand dip. He claims that mitigating climate change, directing investments in network infrastructure and creating a single energy market should be the three interlinked priorities for the Energy Commissioner.  This policy contribution is a supplement to Â?Bruegel memos to the new Commission: EuropeÂ?s economic priorities 2010-2015' published 27 August 2009 and available at http://www.bruegel.org/nc/publications.html

Rethinking the security of the European Union’s gas supply. Bruegel Policy Contribution, Issue 2016/01 January 2016

Highlights: • The security of the European Union’s gas supplies is crucial to ensuring that supplies to households are not disrupted in freezing winters, that industry can flourish and that the EU cannot be blackmailed in vital foreign policy questions. • Gas supply security should be addressed at EU level because a joint solution would be cheaper, national approaches could undermine the internal energy market and have adverse effects on other countries, and the EU Treaty explicitly calls for energy solidarity. • The current focus on supply diversification and reduction of dependence on imported gas is expensive and does not constitute a systemic response. • Instead of doing everything to reduce gas supplies from key suppliers, gas supply security could more effectively be safeguarded by ensuring that unused alternatives are maintained so that they can be tapped into for an indefinite period in case of supply disruption from a key supplier.This Policy Contribution outlines a market approach that could safeguard gas supply security at very low cost

The duties of the president of the polish energy regulatory office in the context of implementing the third energy package

This article presents the duties and powers of the President of the Energy Regulatory Office as the national regulatory authority of Poland within the scope of implementing the Third Energy Package. The article closely examines the changes and omissions connected with implementing the regulations of the Third Liberalization Package. Such implementation has not been fully executed. The biggest shortages are visible in two fields: the realization of the aims of Articles 35 and 37 of Directive 2009/72/EC. Concerning Article 35 of the Directive, the changes to the legal position of the President of URE (i.e., loosening his ties with the sphere of governmental administration, something strongly advocated by negative developments which have taken place in the legal and constitutional status of the authority over the last six years) have not been implemented.energy law, national regulatory authority, energy market, EU law, Third Energy Package, President of the Energy Regulatory Office

Manufacturing the EU Energy Markets. The Current Dynamics of Regulatory Practice

This chapter aims to analysis the new dynamics at work in EU energy regulation. Since the publication of the European Commission’s ‘Sector Inquiry Report’ in January 2007, European energy companies have felt the cold wind of competition law - many for the first time. In addition, national competition authorities (NCAs) have been actively pursuing abusive market practices - sometimes making innovative use of competition law in the process. Certain energy giants have agreed to unbundle their transmission networks - even when their national governments opposed the inclusion of ownership unbundling in the draft ‘Third Package’ of electricity and gas legislation. In parallel, the Third Package envisages the creation of a new regulatory agency - ACER - to co-ordinate technical crossborder regulatory issues in the internal market. So who will be in the driving seat in the next decade - and will co-ordinated regulatory powers be the preferred approach to market design? Will regulatory rules co-exist alongside competition based controls or will the latter gradually supersede the former? This chapter will examine these critical issues.Antitrust, Third Legislative Package, ACER, European Union

Brexit and Crisis Management: Gas Supplies

This briefing by Dr Andrew Judge from the University of Glasgow examines the implications of Brexit for the prevention and management of gas supply crises. It assesses whether Brexit increases the risk of gas supply crises in the short-term and the longer-term challenges in this policy area once the UK leaves the European Union (EU). It finds that the UK has a robust set of arrangements for preventing gas supply disruptions which are linked to, but independent of, EU-level arrangements. Leaving the EU should not substantially increase the risk of gas supply disruptions, even under a ‘no deal’ Brexit. The UK is not heavily reliant on EU gas supplies and has a diverse import infrastructure that should allow it to source supplies in an emergency, if it is prepared to pay higher prices on international LNG markets. Even if the UK is outside of the internal energy market, as it will be under the withdrawal agreement or a ‘no deal’ Brexit, gas trade should continue. Nonetheless, the UK faces several longer-term challenges to its energy security. Addressing these will become increasingly difficult once the UK is no longer part of decision-making processes within the EU. It will need to invest considerable time and resources in its attempts to influence the future development of the EU internal energy market. This is important for ensuring that the UK continues to have secure and affordable gas supplies to meet its considerable levels of demand in the near future

Brexit and Crisis Management: Gas Supplies

This briefing by Dr Andrew Judge from the University of Glasgow examines the implications of Brexit for the prevention and management of gas supply crises. It assesses whether Brexit increases the risk of gas supply crises in the short-term and the longer-term challenges in this policy area once the UK leaves the European Union (EU). It finds that the UK has a robust set of arrangements for preventing gas supply disruptions which are linked to, but independent of, EU-level arrangements. Leaving the EU should not substantially increase the risk of gas supply disruptions, even under a ‘no deal’ Brexit. The UK is not heavily reliant on EU gas supplies and has a diverse import infrastructure that should allow it to source supplies in an emergency, if it is prepared to pay higher prices on international LNG markets. Even if the UK is outside of the internal energy market, as it will be under the withdrawal agreement or a ‘no deal’ Brexit, gas trade should continue. Nonetheless, the UK faces several longer-term challenges to its energy security. Addressing these will become increasingly difficult once the UK is no longer part of decision-making processes within the EU. It will need to invest considerable time and resources in its attempts to influence the future development of the EU internal energy market. This is important for ensuring that the UK continues to have secure and affordable gas supplies to meet its considerable levels of demand in the near future

Internal and external regionalisation of energy policies: the European Union's market governance approach

This paper analyzes the regionalisation of energy policies in the EU. Contrasting with broader concepts of regionalisation, the paper proposes a narrow spatial definition of the concept with policy oriented and economic functions. The concept of regionalisation can then be used in order to analyse processes inside the regional system of the EU and outside the EU. Focusing on the policy level, the article proceeds with an overview of energy market developments and regulatory governance for the analysis of regionalisation processes in the framework of energy policies, putting special emphasis on the regional challenges the Commission was facing in its attempt to liberalise energy markets. The following two sections stress the internal regionalisation of energy markets through regional regulatory cooperation and the external regionalisation by setting up regional cooperation platforms with third party countries, according to their function for European energy supply and their geographical location. The European Neighbourhood Policy and the Energy Community for South-Eastern Europe serve as models for this rather new trend in European energy policies. The paper concludes that internally, regionalisation could lead the way to a functioning market for electricity and gas in the EU and externally deliver a higher degree of energy security and improved investment conditions in partner countries

Аналіз та ідентифікація низькочастотних коливань потужності при виникненні збурень в системоутворюючій мережі ОЕС України

Проаналізовано основні властивості виявлених низькочастотних коливань потужності при виникненні збурень різної величини в системоутворюючій мережі ОЕС України, загальні чинники, які впливають на їх характеристики та степінь небезпеки з точки зору розгойдування режиму системи і порушення коливальної стійкості