Transformation of the energy sector and its impact on the European Union’s external trade in energy raw materials in 2000–2020
Transformation of the energy sector and its impact on the European Union’s external trade in energy raw materials in 2000–2020

Summary/Abstract: The purpose of the paper is to investigate the multifaceted impact of the transformation of the energy sector on domestic economies and international economic relations under the conditions of growing global interdependence. The authors formulate the following research question: What were the changes in the consumption and structure of generating energy, as well as the structure of exports and imports of energy sources, resulting from the transformation of the energy sector in the EU? The following methods were used. The theoretical analysis of the energy sector transformation is based on an interdisciplinary approach proposed by representatives of the International Political Economy. The empirical analysis uses the following indicators: growth rates of energy consumption, shares of selected countries and the EU in the global energy consumption, shares of major sources in the consumption of energy in selected economies, shares of major energy sources in exports and imports of the EU and its member states. Considering the achievements of the EU’s energy policy focused on decreasing the consumption of energy and departing from traditional sources (especially coal) to renewables, the authors concentrate on the results and consequences of the energy policy in the EU. It revealed that the EU had better results on the global scale in limiting energy consumption in 2000–2020. However, the transformation of the energy sector that leads to greater use of renewables is still in the initial stages. Oil and natural gas remain the main sources of energy consumption. When evaluating the impact of transformation on EU energy trade, the dependence on high energy imports in the EU is notable, which actually increased in 2000–2019 from 56.3% to 60.7%. The structure of the imports remained basically the same. The share of oil and natural gas increased slightly, from 88.7% to 89.8%, and the share of renewables climbed from 0.1% to 1.4%. An unfavourable change from the point of view of EU energy policy is the growing share of solid fossil fuels, which was, for the most part, caused by imports to Poland, Slovakia, Czechia and Germany. The structure of exports was quite stable, with oil and natural gas as dominant sources (73.5% and 13.3%, respectively). However, the share of solid fossil fuels in EU exports decreased from 8.8% to 2.8% (2000–2019), which is a positive trend.

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