Browsing by Author "Sasioglu, Mert"

The European energy system faces major challenges. The expansion of renewable energy production causes problems that must be solved if this progress is going to continue. Due to instability in the neighborhood, security of supply has been a growing concern. Advancements in technology have opened new ways to improve energy efficiency. The price of electricity still differs greatly between areas, hurting especially the economic vitality of peripheric countries. It is from these starting points that the common energy policy of the European union emerges. It is a compromise between 28 member states, all with their own distinct basis and interests. Traditionally energy policy has belonged to the core of sovereign state politics. Now the aim is to create a common energy market for the EU. The European commission acts as a facilitator. It too has a strong will of its own. This study aims to offer an overview of the field if common energy policy and its agenda. It asks which factors do explain the relevant actors' stance on the common energy policy, and how do these actors affect its course. The actors chosen are the commission and four member states: Germany, Poland, France and Italy. These questions are approached through a constructivist point of view, pondering on the spatial nature of the EU. Great emphasis is given to the difference in the perceived realities of the actors involved. Other key concepts include political entrepreneurship and the energy trilemma, which illustrates the balancing between sustainable, affordable and reliable energy. The research material contains previous studies, news analysis, commission papers, and information published by organizations included in the formulation and execution of common energy policies. The challenges of renewable energy production, and the limitations in the energy imports of certain states explain the most the need for a common energy market. Actors' stance is partly explained by the spatial scale of their perceived realities, which greatly differs between the commission and member states. The energy trilemma and physical geography have explanatory power in certain context-specific cases. Also crucial is member states' impression of their own vulnerability. It is interesting to note that domestic politics and a will to control markets explains the member states' stances much better than a traditional will to cling to their territory. Stakeholder-driven institutions play a growing role in the formulation and execution of common energy policies, but the underlining power is still wielded by member states. The member states only rarely resort to political entrepreneurship. The commission on the other hand uses this tool extensively, as it tries to make the member states accept its self-perceived reality. In addition to this, the commission engages in concrete physical and political-economical activities to build into reality its own vision of a common energy space. In the discussion, it is pondered how far can the difference in contractions between the commission and member states be reducted, and do these constructions restrict the potential integration avenues of the European union.