International energy trade: The EU’s position and energy security

Abstract

Increasing energy consumption and ensuring the supply of energy resources in sufficient quantities and changes in the energy mix of individual countries and regions are a pressing issue today. Besides their economic dimension, energy and energy policy also carry geopolitical and security importance. The ecological and social aspect is increasingly important; issues related to the availability of resources, stability of supply, efficiency and fuel prices are becoming more common and pressing. This study has expanded on the subject of energy dependence to include the concept of interdependence. It has also delved into international trade, incorporating this plane to provide a broad international dimension and emphasise the need to strengthen the energy security of individual states. The aim of this article is to show the gravity of the EU’s unilateral Russian-dominated import focus and the possibility of reshaping the pattern of energy imports into the EU. The analysis of energy trade has drawn on an interpretation of the outputs of available data, with the caveat that the war in Ukraine has limited momentum in this area. The results of the subject explored here are presented in the form of a discourse on opportunities to redirect trade and strengthen the EU’s energy security. The European Union, as a primary-energy import region, must revisit the territorial structure of its primary-energy imports, diversify its suppliers, change the energy mix and interconnect energy infrastructure by deploying new technologies.