EU Energy Policy Under the Treaty of Lisbon Rules: Between a New Policy and Business as Usual

Abstract

This paper provides a preliminary assessment of the EU’s energy policy under the Treaty of Lisbon rules. It reviews the major and minor effects of the rules on energy (both formally and informally) and how these are perceived by the EU institutions post-Lisbon. This includes consideration of the new elements of the reformed institutional architecture in this policy area. In the context of the Treaty of Lisbon, the main questions this paper seeks to answer are to what extent energy policy constitutes a new policy area and whether the EU is a more coherent actor in this and other instances where competence is shared with the member states.

Keywords: EU, Treaty of Lisbon, EU institutions, energy policy, energy, policy, assessment