The European Natural Gas Market

Abstract

The European Union started the introduction of competition in the European market for natural gas. Today, mid-2016, the process of restructuring is still going on. In parallel, important changes in geopolitical, environmental and technological determinants can be observed in the European and global energy and gas markets. These changes have been highly influential in generating ‘reactive’ policies in the European Union, both in Brussels as well as in the Member States. The evolution of the European natural gas policy creating a strongly regulated version of a ‘well-functioning’ gas market remains a highly politicized and instable experiment. The values attached to natural gas are constantly shifting between the economics, to security of supply and sustainability. Moreover, the importance attached to these values and their operationalization are different in the various parts of Europe. Therewith, the creation of ‘well-functioning’ EU gas market will always remain a politicized and never ending story.