Clean energy transition of the EU in the face of war in Ukraine

Focusing on gas and oil supply to the EU, this thesis maps out recent transformations of the energy sector and explores how the role of different suppliers and resources changed in the wake of the war in Ukraine. Author uses examples from the history of common policy changes which were acting as a response to previous gas disruptions that were part of Russian strategy and uses them as a road map to the present situation. Focus of the thesis is to define and critically evaluate the main aspects of the Energy Union, as a crucial document determining the goals of the EU and its energy policy as well as the means to achieve them. The ongoing war in Ukraine is used as a decisive event that can be analyzed to discover whether the EU has been acting in accordance with its established principles and goals, or it has derailed from its path. In the second part, the author explores what were the immediate reactions of the EU energy policy which has been searching for alternative sources of energy as the risk of energy insufficiency rises. In this case the main focus is dedicated to the role of renewable energy, nuclear energy and LNG which, in order, represent the cleanest and cheapest sources of energy and therefore appropriate alternatives. Lastly, the author tries to evaluate what would be the optimal strategy to proceed with, to achieve the goals outlined in the Energy Union in the light of current political events, partnerships, and capacities available. The thesis hence unfolds the structure of the energy policy of the EU, specific goals and policy decisions related to them and seeks to explain its recent developments, while trying to discover the weaknesses of the current energy policy.