Energy and Global Economic Crisis

This is the second in a series of ten papers published jointly by the EU Institute for Security Studies (EUISS) and the European Institute of the Mediterranean (IEMed) which aim to address ten critical topics for Euro-Mediterranean relations. The papers have been commissioned with a view to formulating policy options on a set of issues which are central to achieving the objectives set out in the 1995 Barcelona Declaration and the Paris Declaration of 2008, as well as defining new targets for 2020 in the political, economic and social spheres. This second paper looks at the European Union strategy in terms of energy security and how the EU and the Mediterranean partner countries could benefit from a renewed energy model based on energy efficiency, renewable energy and strengthened Euro-Mediterranean cooperation. The global context of economic crisis is an ideal framework to stop and reflect on the development models implemented in the Mediterranean partner countries and on the feasibility of the current growth model. In this respect, the authors present a series of policy recommendations with the aim of advancing towards a sustainable energy model in the Mediterranean and improving the existing Euro-Mediterranean energy cooperation