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The EU’s energy and climate policy
strategy for 2020
European energy and climate policy in its cur-
rent state was mainly developed between 2005
and 2007. After the Eastern enlargement pro-
cess and against the backdrop of the failed
European Constitution referenda in France and
the Netherlands, the search for new fields of
action for the EU had further intensified. Due to
recurring problems with Russia as the EU’s most
important oil and gas supplier, and especially in
light of the UN climate negotiations that had
raised high hopes for an international agree-
ment at that time, it appeared to be the next
logical step for the EU to put an emphasis on
this policy field. After Great Britain initiated
some crucial first steps during its EU Council
Presidency in 2005, the Federal Republic of
Germany took on the task of reaching a strate-
gic policy consensus between the heads of state
and government, which also had been vigor-
ously pursued by the European Commission.
The energy strategy for Europe, which was fi-
nally adopted inMarch of 2007 under Germany’s
Presidency, boasts a strong environmental focus
and is designed to help Europe evolve into a
low-carbon-economy, while at the same time
securing its long-term competitiveness.
Agreeing on an energy policy and quantifi-
able targets for the year 2020, however, was
merely a first step in the right direction. Much
more difficult was the implementation of the
agreed objectives in the years that followed.
Updating the EU’s Energy and
Climate Policy. The new 2030
framework and its
implications
1
Severin Fischer, Oliver Geden
1
The article is based on “Severin Fischer/Oliver Geden (2013):
Updating the EU’s Energy and Climate Policy. New Targets for
the Post-2020 Period
, International Policy Analysis, Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, May 2013” and on “Severin Fischer (2015):
The
EU’s New Energy and Climate Policy Framework for 2030. Implications for the German Energy Transition,
SWP Comment,
Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik, January 2015”.