GREEN POLICY, GREY REGULATION: ENERGY SOVEREIGNTY AS THE EUROPEAN UNION’S PRIMARY GOAL

Abstract

Contextualization: The article critically evaluates three recent regulations by the European Union (EU) on renewable, gas, nuclear energy and biodiversity, which undermine the continuity of EU environmental goals. The analysis of regulations focuses on: 1) Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/1214 of 9 March 2022, which makes amendments to the green taxonomy including gas and nuclear, (2) Council Regulation (EU) 2022/2577 of 22 December 2022, which offers emergency authorizations for renewable energy sources, and 3) Regulation (EU) 2024/1991 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 June 2024, which seeks to protect and restore natural areas, supporting the European Green Deal and the 2030 Biodiversity Strategy. Objectives: The objective is to critically assess whether three recent regulations preserve the coherence of European environmental commitments or reveal a shift in favor of energy sovereignty. The critique questions the supposed objectives and their alleged exceptional nature, pointing out legal inconsistencies in the mechanisms. Method: The research adopts a qualitative, interdisciplinary, and legal-doctrinal approach, combined with policy analysis, through the examination of competences, strategic instruments, and normative acts of the European Union. Results: The article concludes that these recent regulatory changes reveal a clear break from the EU’s longstanding discourse on environmental impact, as they privilege energy sovereignty over previously legislated environmental objectives.