Poland's Counterintuitive Energy Policies

Media Coverage | July 19, 2017

In a piece for Euractiv, EWI Senior Fellow Danila Bochkarev discusses how Poland's cherrypicking of European Union directives on energy is often against its better interest. Even though the central government oversees an extensive network of energy infrastructure and the EU has passed legislation making the Polish energy market competitive and immune to price and supply fluctuance, Warsaw still attempts to pursue an independent energy policy.

Not only have Poland's protectionist policies stymied the development of a competitive market and increased the cost of energy for Poles, they have additionally made it reluctant to abandon coal in favor of European-wide decarbonization initiatives. Bochkarev contends that Poland must liberalize its energy market and adhere to Europe's regulations if it wants to honor its climate obligations and reduce its dependency on one energy source.  

Read the full article on Euractiv here.