Energy Security and Natural Gas Markets in Europe Lessons from the EU and the United States

Movingbeyond most conventional thinking about energy security in Europe which revolves around stability of supplies and the reliability of suppliers, this book presentsthe history of European policy-making regarding energy resources, including recent controversies about shale gas and fracking. Using theUnited Statesas a benchmark, the authortests the hypothesis that EU energy security is at risk primarily because of a lack of market integration and cooperation between member states. This lack of integration still prohibits natural gas to flow freely throughout the continent, which makes parts of Europe vulnerable in case of supply disruptions. The book demonstrates that the EU gas market has been developing at different speeds, leaving the Northwest of the continent reasonably well integrated, with sufficient trade and liquidity and different supplies, whereas other parts are less developed. In these parts of Europe there is a structural lack of investments in infrastructure, interconnectors, reverse flow options and storage facilities. Thus, even though substantial progress has been made in partsof the EU,single source dependency often prevails, leaving the relevant member states vulnerable to market power abuse. Detailed comparisons are made of the situations in the Netherlands and Poland, and of energy policy in the USA. The book dismantles some of the existing assumptions about the concept of energy security, and touches upon the level of rhetoric that features in most energy security and policy debates in Europe.

1. Europe’s Focus on Available Natural Gas Supplies, and Why There Is More To It Part 1: Framework of Analysis 2. How to Analyze European Union Energy Security Introduction Energy Security Studies (Neo)Functionalism and New Institutional Economics Multilevel Governance Theory Discussion References Part 2: Energy Policy in the European Union 3. Status Quo in European Union Energy Policy Introduction Markets Gas Infrastructure Regulatory Authorities Discussion References 4. Addressing Energy Security from Brussels – The Merits of Regulation 994/2010 Introduction Towards Preventive Action Plans and Emergency Plans A First Litmus Test? "Stress Tests" During the Ukraine Crisis Conclusions References Part 3:Case Studies 5. A Structural Lack of Investments in Natural Gas Infrastructure Introduction Why the European Union Status Quo Is Suboptimal Natural Gas Infrastructure in the United States Relations between Legislatures and Regulatory Authorities Revenues of Gas Transmission System Operators Private and Public Ownership, and Investments Decision-making Structures, Based on a MLG-Analysis Discussion References 6. The Political Minefield Called European Shale Gas Introduction Market Developments Environmental Concerns Regulation Gas Infrastructure Energy Security MLG Framework with Institutional Overview Discussion References 7. Europe’s Future Gas Market Structure – Tracing the US Example? Introduction Available and Planned Infrastructure Implementation of Legislation Market Trade and Long-Term Contracts The Role of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Discussion References Part 4: Conclusions 8. Conclusions and Recommendations – A Long and Bumpy Road to European Union Energy Security European Union Energy Security European Union Energy Policy Reflection

Tim Boersma is a Fellow and Acting Director of the Energy Security Initiative, part of the Foreign Policy Program at the Brookings Institution, Washington DC, USA. He has a PhD in international relations from the University of Groningen, the Netherlands, and has previously been a Research Fellow, Transatlantic Academy, Washington, DC, and Visiting Scholar at the School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University.