Daniel Scholten

From Regulation to Enforcement in the EU Policy Cycle: A New Type of Functional Spillover?*

The European Union has acquired enforcement competences in areas where it previously only had regulatory authority. This expansion of competences from one step in the policy cycle to another is a blind spot in the works on functional spillover. While the increasing enforcement powers of the EU are mentioned, it is in the context of more competences, not what type. This paper investigates the nature of this ‘policy cycle type of functional spillover’, argues that this is a new type of functional spillover and discusses the significance of this finding. The paper offers original data concerning the expansion of EUs competences in direct enforcement.

Towards a European Division of Labour: Do Europe’s Crises Highlight Structural Challenges to Sustainable Economic Growth in the Eurozone?

The financial and economic crises of the last few years in many Southern Eurozone countries are generally studied individually, without reference to other such crises in the region. In this note, we argue that they may also be approached as symptoms of an underlying structural challenge facing the EU economy. In many ways the relationship between northern and southern Eurozone countries seems remarkably similar to typical economic centre–periphery relations, yet without the harmonizing role that a national government could play. The occurrence and combination of crises seems to be indicative of what one would expect from the adverse effects of centre–periphery relations among countries. Unfortunately, this would imply that the crises we are currently seeing are likely to continuously reoccur in the near future to the detriment of sustainable economic growth and political-economic stability in Europe.

The Geopolitics of Renewables—An Introduction and Expectations

This volume explores the geopolitics of renewables: the implications for interstate energy relations of a transition towards renewable energy. Noting the different geographic and technical characteristics of renewable energy systems vis-a-vis those of fossil fuels, it investigates specifically how these might (re)shape strategic realities and policy considerations of producer, consumer, and transit countries and energy-related patterns of cooperation and conflict between them. Focus is on contemporary developments and how they may shape the coming decades. The objective is to establish a comprehensive overview and understanding of the emerging energy game, one that puts the topic on the map and provides practical illustrations of the changes renewables bring to energy geopolitics and specific countries. To this end, a novel analytical framework is introduced that moves from geography and technology to economics and politics and developments are studied on three levels of analysis: (a) the emerging global energy game, winners and losers; (b) regional and bilateral energy relations of established and rising powers; and (c) infrastructure developments and governance responses. This introductory chapter lays the groundwork for a comprehensive overview of contemporary developments by introducing the topic and field of geopolitics of renewables, developing an analytical framework, and posing expectations on what the transition towards renewable energy most likely implies for interstate energy relations.

The Strategic Realities of the Emerging Energy Game—Conclusion and Reflection

This volume explores the geopolitics of renewables: the implications for interstate energy relations of a transition towards renewable energy. Noting the different geographic and technical characteristics of renewable energy systems vis-a-vis those of fossil fuels, it investigates specifically how renewables might (re)shape strategic realities and policy considerations of producer, consumer, and transit countries and energy-related patterns of cooperation and conflict between them. Focus is on contemporary developments and how they may shape the coming decades. The objective is to establish a comprehensive overview and understanding of the emerging energy game, one that puts the topic on the map and provides practical illustrations of the changes renewables bring to energy geopolitics and specific countries. To this end, a novel analytical framework is introduced that moves from geography and technology to economics and politics and developments are studied on three levels of analysis: (a) the emerging global energy game, winners and losers; (b) regional and bilateral energy relations of established and rising powers; and (c) infrastructure developments and governance responses. This concluding chapter summarizes the core developments shaping the geopolitics of renewables, using the framework to reflect on the relationship under study and our expectations. It also draws overarching lessons for the field of geopolitics of renewables and regarding the challenges and opportunities countries face in securing an affordable energy supply in the emerging energy game.

European Power Struggles. Can EU's Decarbonisation Agenda Break the State-Company Axis in the Power Sector?

Europe’s power system is still marked by a distinct national component, and despite some regions with strongly integrated power systems, electricity supply today still has a largely national basis. Policies to decarbonise the power sector may fundamentally alter this situation, because power generation from renewable, carbon-neutral sources may require large, flexible, and heterogenic power pools as backdrop for efficient operation. Integration of little or non-integrated parts of the European power system is therefore a key element for the successful transition of the European power sector towards more renewables. But a development which fosters integration, growing transmission distances and bigger markets will likely lead to a reshuffling of allocation of power generation capacity in Europe. As with any fundamental policy change, decarbonisation of the power sector will create new winners and losers. Moreover, an integrated power system will probably cause new dependencies on the good-will of neighbouring countries. Europe is hence confronted with a ‘catch-22’: On the one hand, policy makers see the advantages of renewables and the exploitation of domestic energy resources, yet the necessary adaptations of power generation, distribution and consumption implies the risk of ‘harming’ the national power sector. EU policies to increase renewables and to create an internal energy market (IEM) thus aim at ameliorating this situation by e.g. both stimulating construction of renewable energy infrastructure and creating more interconnectors between member states. But due to various interests at the national level, member states’ levels of ambitions in contributing to achieving these overarching targets vary a lot. The instruments the European Union has at her hands will therefore have to be refined if the reluctance of member states to integrate power systems is to be overcome.

The Sense and Nonsense of the EU Integration Debate

The current financial crisis in the Eurozone has put the debate on EU integration back on the table. Yet, how does the debate on EU integration, particularly the arguments and ideals used in it, actually influence the process of EU integration? This article wishes to provide some food for thought by arguing the debate’s irrelevance in furthering or hindering EU integration process. It does so by discussing the role of the debate’s arguments in shaping EU integration and comparing the EU debate with the one that the founding fathers of the US waged. The article shows the debate is beside the point largely because most steps in EU integration are driven by circumstances, events, or national interests, that even when one argument seems decisive it is likely to be elevated over others by circumstances, and that none of the debate’s arguments hold an intrinsic value over others.