Public Participation in EU External Energy and Climate Governance: Assessing Practices in the Development of NECPs in Energy Community Countries

This article examines public participation in EU external energy and climate governance through the case of National Energy and Climate Plans (NECPs) in Energy Community countries. Building on democratic and participatory governance theory, it conceptualises public participation not merely as a procedural requirement but as a key condition for democratic legitimacy, policy quality, and governance effectiveness in complex and transformative policy domains such as energy transitions. The article situates participation within an asymmetrical governance context in which non-EU countries are expected (and obliged) to align with the EU climate and energy governance framework on public participation while lacking full political inclusion in EU decision-making. Empirically, the article focuses on the preparation of NECPs in selected Energy Community countries (Moldova, Ukraine, Serbia, North Macedonia, Albania, Georgia, Montenegro). While public participation in NECPs has been extensively analysed in EU Member States, it remains underexplored in externally governed contexts. The analysis therefore addresses how public participation and a multilevel dialogue are organised, which actors are included, at what stage of the policy process participation occurs, and whether participatory input is meaningfully integrated into policy outcomes. Particular attention is paid to the quality of participation and dialogue, understood along the dimensions of inclusiveness, integration into decision-making, but also of transparency and effectiveness. Methodologically, the article employs a comparative qualitative analysis of NECPs submitted between 2022 and 2025, complemented by an assessment of the supportive and coordinating role of the Energy Community Secretariat in shaping participatory practices. The findings highlight significant variation across countries but also reveal structural constraints on meaningful participation linked to limited administrative capacity, late-stage consultations, narrow stakeholder inclusion, and externally driven governance framework. Overall, the article contributes to the literature on public participation by examining the Energy Community as a case of EU external differentiation and by highlighting the role of public participation in shaping EU energy and climate cooperation in its neighborhood.