Thijs Van de Graaf

Global Energy Governance in a Multipolar World

Contents: Introduction Part I Global Energy Governance Today: The global energy challenge Blueprint for a global sustainable energy regime The institutional landscape of global energy governance. Part II Bringing in Multipolarity: Major power concerts and global energy governance The players in the multipolar energy game The G8s track record in global energy governance. Part III Conclusions: G8 leadership in global energy governance: an evaluation Prospects for energy cooperation in a multipolar world Bibliography Index.

Fragmentation in Global Energy Governance: Explaining the Creation of IRENA

In 2009, some member countries of the International Energy Agency (IEA) spearheaded the creation of a new international organization, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), despite the fact that the IEA had been working on renewables for decades. Why would those states create an overlapping organization, thus advancing the overall degree of fragmentation? Drawing on the work of Mansfield and Moravcsik, this article provides an explanation based on domestic preferences and institutional capture. Viewed through this lens, IRENA was part of an institutional hedging strategy instigated by domestic actors in Germany and allied states to counter the IEA’s alleged normative bias toward the fossil and nuclear energy industries with a wider set of alternative energy options. The findings of the article suggest that, depending on the domestic preferences of a set of states capable to innovate, the transaction costs associated with institutional reform may surmount those of institutional creation.

Oil, energy poverty and resource dependence in West Africa

The new rush to discover and exploit hydrocarbon resources in West Africa, and particularly in the Gulf of Guinea, has raised hopes in the affected countries for new petroleum wealth and economic development. History shows, however, that major oil and gas discoveries have a very mixed record, at best, in terms of societal gains and political stability. This article therefore assesses the macroeconomic and governance implications of the recent oil and gas rush in West Africa. Clearly, sound management of the resource revenues will be crucial in national efforts to tackle poverty and promote socio-economic development. While there is a large body of literature available on the issues and best practices related to oil and gas resource management and the design of associated institutions and financial mechanisms, the article fills two gaps. First, while Nigeria and Angola have received ample attention, this article focuses on some smaller countries in the Gulf of Guinea that have only recently emerged as oil and gas producers, such as Liberia, Niger and Sierra Leone. Secondly, it highlights implications for two major socio-economic characteristics of these emerging resource-rich states: (1) energy poverty; and (2) agricultural dependence and lock-in on single crops. The early evolution of institutions to manage the newfound revenues is found to be critical to long-term prosperity or instability. A legacy of beneficial or problematic social impact of new resources hinges on the success in using the new petroleum resources to establish an ‘enabling environment’ where resource wealth is seen across society as a means to build stable institutions, reduce social and economic inequality and drive national prosperity.

The International Renewable Energy Agency: a success story in institutional innovation?

This article interprets the role and significance of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) in global environmental and energy governance. First, we conduct a comparative analysis of IRENA and other recent innovations in global governance, showing that IRENA stands out with regard to the timing of creation, speed of ratification, and focus of the mandate. Second, we identify three mechanisms through which IRENA can promote the global diffusion of renewable energy: (1) by offering valuable epistemic services to its member states, (2) by serving as a focal point for renewable energy in a scattered global institutional environment, and (3) by mobilizing other international institutions to promote renewable energy. Finally, we reflect on the conditions that could make IRENA’s policies a continued success and on the lessons that the experience with IRENA holds for other attempts at innovation in global governance.

Your Place or Mine? Institutional Capture and the Creation of Overlapping International Institutions

Why do states create overlapping international institutions? This practice presents a puzzle: conventional wisdom suggests that states should use existing institutions to minimize the transaction costs of co-operation. This article proposes a bargaining approach to explain the de novo creation of overlapping international institutions. In this model, a dissatisfied ‘challenger’ state threatens to create a new institution, and a ‘defender’ state can propose to reform the currently focal institution. Overlapping institutions are created when the currently focal institution is (1) captured by interests opposed to the challenger and (2) domestic political pressure to abandon the status quo is intense. Similar to models of deterrence, the expectation that the new institution garners support among third parties is irrelevant for the equilibrium likelihood of de novo creation. A comparative analysis of international bargaining over energy, whaling and intellectual property rights provides empirical evidence.

Global Energy Governance: A Review and Research Agenda

Over the past few years, global energy governance (GEG) has emerged as a major new field of enquiry in international studies. Scholars engaged in this field seek to understand how the energy sector is governed at the global level, by whom and with what consequences. By focusing on governance, they broaden and enrich the geopolitical and hard-nosed security perspectives that have long been, and still are, the dominant perspectives through which energy is analysed. Though still a nascent field, the literature on GEG is thriving and continues to attract the attention of a growing number of researchers. This article reviews the GEG literature as it has developed over the past 10 years. Our aim is to highlight both the progress and limitations of the field, and to identify some opportunities for future research. The article proceeds as follows. First, it traces the origins of the GEG literature (section “Origins and roots of GEG research”). The subsequent sections deal with the two topics that have received the most attention in the GEG literature: Why does energy need global governance (section “The goals and rationale of global energy governance”)? And, who governs energy (section “Mapping the global energy architecture”)? We then address a third question that has received far less attention: How well or poor is energy governed (section “Evaluating global energy governance”)? In our conclusions (section “Conclusions and outlook”), we reflect on the current state of GEG, review recent trends and innovations, and identify some questions that warrant future consideration by scholars. This article is published as part of a thematic collection on global governance.

Introduction to the special issue: energy subsidies at the intersection of climate, energy, and trade governance

Subsidies for the production and consumption of energy have come to the forefront of international debates in recent years. The issue of fossil fuel subsidies has captured the global political agenda ever since 2009, when the leaders of the Group of 20 (G20) pledged to phase out ‘inefficient’ subsidies because they ‘encourage wasteful consumption, reduce our energy security, impede investment in clean energy sources, and undermine efforts to deal with the threat of climate change’ (G2

Rising Powers and Multilateral Institutions

The rise of new powers such as China and India is sending shockwaves through the global multilateral system. Yet, not every multilateral institution is affected in the same way and many institutions have developed different responses to the global power shift. This volume is the first to systematically examine these different responses. It looks in detail at 13 multilateral institutions ranging from exclusive Western clubs (NATO, OECD, IEA, IASB, and G8) over global institutions in which rising powers are deprived of equal decision-making power (UN Security Council, IMF, and World Bank) to global institutions in which rising powers have equal decision-making power (WTO, WIPO, UNFCCC, CBD, and the G20). The contributors offer an interpretation of why some institutions are proving highly resilient thanks to the innovative outreach and reform activities they deploy, while others have more troubles to adapt as they become paralyzed by gridlock or even retreat from the global scene.

Fractured politics? The comparative regulation of shale gas in Europe

ABSTRACT European countries have developed strikingly different responses to shale gas and fracking. Some have imposed outright bans, while others have issued permits and even awarded generous tax breaks to the industry. To explain this puzzling variance, this article builds a theoretical framework that focuses on energy security, economic competitiveness, the party composition of government, public opinion, multilevel governance and democratic tradition. It then conducts a qualitative comparative analysis (QCA) of the regulation of shale gas in 16 European Union member countries. We find that the level of public concern is a sufficient condition for restrictive regulation. Other conditions only work in combination with others, while energy security and democratic tradition have no impact on the regulation of shale gas and fracking. The findings indicate that the uptake of shale gas is not simply a function of structural factors such as geology or population density, but rather the result of political factors.

States, markets, and institutions: integrating international political economy and global energy politics

Perhaps not since the 1970s has energy policy, technology, and security been so intensely discussed as today. Whether it is the race for energy resources in the Arctic, roller-coaster oil prices, the transition toward low carbon sources of energy, or concerns over nuclear safety, energy continues to make international headlines. Today’s pressing energy challenges have opened up an incredibly vast research agenda. Sadly, political scientists and other social scientists have lagged behind their colleagues from science, engineering, and economics in addressing these issues. While some researchers directed their focus to energy matters and, especially, oil during the turbulent era of the oil shocks, the attention was short-lived. Only recently, after two decades of relative neglect, have political scientists began to rediscover energy as a major area of inquiry (Hughes and Lipscy 2013; Falkner 2014). Given the sheer magnitude, social pervasiveness, policy salience, and long-term nature of today’s energy problems, their interest is likely to persist.