The European Energy Policy Chair is delighted to invite you to its High-Level Policy Conference on April 24th 2015, on ‘Energy Transition in Europe: a multifaceted challenge for governance and policies’, at the College of Europe in Bruges (Bruges, Verversdijk 16).

The European Union (EU) is now building an Energy Union; a catalyst for its energy transition. It aims at ensuring secure, affordable and low-carbon energy for citizens and businesses all across Europe in a spirit of solidarity. To reach this goal, the EU is progressively moving away from fossil fuels towards more renewables in the energy mix. It is also shifting from a centralized system focused on suppliers with old technologies and outdated business models to a system empowering consumers by creating flexibility to manage demand as well as supply.

To ease this transition, the EU is committed to deal with the currently fragmented system of uncoordinated national policies, market barriers and energy islands. Such a historical shift creates great opportunities, but also faces tremendous challenges.

In this context, the conference aims to address two key dimensions of the energy transitions in Europe:

How to articulate several levels of governance both inside and outside the EU ? (session 1);
How to build an Energy Union that encompasses trade, innovation, social and industrial policies? (session 2)

The debates between several distinguished speakers and all participants, including students from the College of Europe, will then address how the various and relevant policy actors, strategies and levels of governance can foster their mutual understanding and better interact.

For more information, you can look at the provisional programme of the conference.

The conference is public and attendance is free of charge; but registration is required to attend it.

If you have further questions, please contact thomas.pellerin@coleurope.eu.