Energy Crisis Revolution? : The Impact of the Solidarity Contribution on the Evolution of EU Fiscal Powers

Francesco Lionetto

doi:10.22151/politikon.61.2

Authors

Francesco Lionetto University of Bologna https://orcid.org/0009-0006-9839-8871

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22151/politikon.61.2

Keywords:

Energy Governance, Energy Crisis, Fiscal Governance, Fiscal Capacity, Fiscal Regulation, Fiscal Integration, Next Generation EU, Recovery and Resilience Fund, Solidarity Contribution, Historical Institutionalism

Abstract

Since 2021, the EU has been threatened by an energy crisis, causing a dramatic rise in energy prices and the inflation rate. Among the measures adopted by the EU in response is Regulation 1854/2022, introducing a solidarity contribution to be levied on the surplus profits of companies in the energy market. Through the lens of historical institutionalism, this paper analyzes the solidarity contribution to understand what kind of institutional change, if any, it represents for EU fiscal integration. The paper finds that, rather than a revolution, the adoption of the solidarity contribution reflects path-dependence. That is, with the adoption of Regulation 1854/2022, the EU has maintained a fiscal regulatory approach to the energy sector that does not substantially depart from previous fiscal governance modes.

Author Biography

Francesco Lionetto, University of Bologna

Francesco Lionetto is a PhD candidate in Political and Social Sciences at the University of Bologna. He holds a cum laude degree in International Relations from Luiss Guido Carli, where he completed a dissertation on changes in the European Union’s energy policy following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, supervised by Professor Sergio Fabbrini. His research interests focus on the European Union, with particular attention to energy and fiscal policies.

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