The energy security trap

Abstract

Energy is an important impetus behind the socioeconomic development of society. Due to their relatively small deposits of energy resources, European Union (EU) countries are forced to import fuels from third countries. Moreover, widespread use of renewable energy sources (RES) requires significant supplies of non-energy resources, such as minerals (cobalt, lithium, graphite or rare earth metals), that are also lacking in the EU. In addition, the unstable nature of RES creates the need for further use of low-emission non-renewable energy resources, such as natural gas. Unfortunately, most gas deposits are located in politically unstable areas of the world. Also, the key mineral resources are unequally distributed. Therefore, from the EU perspective, ensuring both current and future energy security in light of the EU's climate policy might be perceived as a significant trap. Here, fundamental questions arise: How to build energy independence based on RES while maintaining energy security? Where is the limit of a country's energy security? Is the market mechanism an effective tool to guarantee energy security? This analysis focuses particularly on import dependencies, both for energy resources and for non-energy resources that are used in the development of “green” energy in the EU.