The Energy Union: Towards Alternative Governance Options?

In 2015, the European Commission published its Communication on the Energy Union, which calls for a transformation of Europe’s energy governance system. The Energy Union represents an ambitious project, which draws on the four pillars of EU energy policy: the functioning of the energy market, the security of supply, the promotion of energy efficiency and renewable energy, and the interconnection of energy networks. In addition, the Communication calls for speaking with one voice in international negotiations, and assigns citizens an important role in attaining energy transition. Despite the Communication’s acknowledgement of the important role of citizens, the governance arrangements outlined by the same document do not reflect this. What role could citizens’ networks play for attaining the goals of the Energy Union? This paper investigates how the European federation for renewable energy cooperatives (REScoop) seeks to integrate the citizens’ perspective into energy politics. To this end, this paper examines the appearance of REScoop in European online media and discusses how the organization’s statements in these media relate to the attainment of the Energy Union. In this way, the paper will contribute to the debate on the alternative governance options for the Energy Union by shedding light on the potential of citizens’ networks to contribute attaining the goal of energy transition.