EurActiv: Can Europe 'copy paste' an energy union?

A European energy union is increasingly on the agenda, as tensions with Russia rise and the EU is confronted with its energy dependence on Russian gas. But replicating the model of the banking union is a naive approach.

The post-war shock enabled the creation of a European coal and steel community; a banking union rose from the financial crisis. Could the escalating situation in Ukraine provide momentum for the emergence of a new energy integration project, which – similarly to its predecessors – would fundamentally change the regulatory landscape and the way governments and businesses operate in Europe?

When introducing the proposal for a European energy union earlier this year, Polish PM Tusk drew parallels with the recently agreed banking union: a single European body (supervisory or purchasing), a single resolution mechanism (a joint external representation as the energy equivalent) and a solidarity-based system underpinned by a common fund (in energy: EU-funded infrastructure build-up). He proposed an intellectually provocative idea of an integration project building on models in other sectors. And despite initial reservations by some member states, incoming Commission President Juncker has further championed the concept in his speech to the European Parliament. However, could energy really borrow from the financial sector, “copy & paste” key elements and utilise similar drivers?
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