The European Union in its present-day form is the result of various associations of individual states such as the ECSC and the EEC. These organisations were founded in the 1950s, in part to enable the production and trading of energy under common sets of rules. However, a truly coherent energy policy did not emerge until 2007 when the European Energy Strategy was first adopted. Current challenges include issues such as climate change and energy efficiency, the dependence on fossil fuel imports, the energy transition or the return of the US to fossil fuels.
Energy
The journey from a coal union to the energy transition
Climate: Removing CO2 from the air no longer optional
The big question as COP26 nears is can major economies, by 2050, reduce emissions enough to deliver a carbon neutral world? Rising up the agenda are the tools to pull CO2 straight from the air
EU targets high energy prices
The EU has presented a "toolbox" of measures to mitigate an energy crunch that threatens to send Europeans' power bills soaring
The world’s slow transition to cleaner energy
The transition towards cleaner energy has made progress but not quick enough to limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius, as agreed in the 2015 Paris climate agreement
Nuclear option: Earth’s climate panacea or poison?
For its supporters, nuclear energy is the world's best -- perhaps only -- hope to avoid catastrophic climate change. Opponents say it is too expensive, too risky and totally unnecessary
Zero net emissions by 2050: a huge challenge for the airline industry
How can passengers take 10 billion flights a year without contributing to global warming? The question of "greening" the international aviation sector by 2050 constitutes a huge task whose stakes can make the head spin, according to the airlines themselves
Why Europe is facing a surge in energy prices
Prices for gas and electricity are soaring in Europe as winter approaches, forcing governments to react. What are the factors behind this surge in energy prices?