Issues of Energy Security in the Black Sea Region

Abstract

In terms of energy security, the Black Sea region is important to Europe. So far, most of the debates on that subject have been focused on the vital supplies of oil and gas from Russia, the Caspian Basin, and the northern segment of the Middle East. Repeated disruptions of the transit of Russian gas through Ukraine, whatever the political or/and commercial motivation may have been, has revealed some serious system vulnerabilities and has highlighted the strategic nature of the pursuit of energy security in Europe today. Inevitably and for very good reasons, a lot of attention has been given to the existing and planned pipeline routes going around or across the Black Sea. Much less attention has been given to the development of the Black Sea energy market in its own right and to the potential advantages of coping with some current and future energy issues in a multilateral regional format rather than through individual action at national level. This paper proposes to go beyond pipeline politics, without down playing their continued significance, and to concentrate instead on some topical questions related to the sustainability and resilience of energy systems as applicable to the Black Sea region.