by Nikolaus J. Kurmayer
Norwegian politicians are resisting attempts to implement critical EU energy laws, which would integrate the country more tightly into European power markets.
The EU’s expanded free trade region (EEA), of which Norway is a key member, is being rocked by Oslo wrestling with its role in Europe ahead of September elections.
At the heart of the controversy: implementing EU laws on energy efficiency, power market and renewables that were first proposed by the European Commission back in 2019.
"We think it’s wrong to hand over more power to the EU, and that we should instead go in the opposite direction," said Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum of the Centre Party, on Monday.
He stressed that adopting the laws would tie Norway closer to Europe’s "dysfunctional" electricity market.
Electricity policies have become more mainstream in highly electrified Norway, where the price of power has an immediate impact on daily life. Two-thirds of homes are kept warm with heat pumps, and almost all new cars sold are electric vehicles.
Last December, power prices going beyond €100 per MWh saw the country in uproar.
“These prices are absolutely shit,” said Energy Minister Terje Asland then, kickstarting a debate on whether Norway’s power links to Europe were to blame.
Blessed with abundant hydropower resources, Norway is a major exporter of electricity to surrounding countries, but when Norway helps its neighbours close their power supply gaps, its own prices rise accordingly.
Asland vowed to cut a cable to Denmark "if it turns out that they contribute to the high prices we are seeing now."
The bigger coalition partner, Norway’s centre-left Labour Party wants the EU rules adopted.
"We’re receiving signals from the EU at various levels that a lack of implementation could be detrimental to the agreements we want," said Labour Party Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store on Friday.
"Historically, Norway has been slow to implement energy and climate laws," explains Elin Lerum Boasson, a professor of political science at University Oslo. However with increasing geopolitical instability "implementation of EU laws, and thus closer alignment with Brussels, is high on the agenda for the Labour Party."
The EU has yet to officially take a stance on Norway’s failure to adopt the laws.
The implementation of the EU power rules is on track to become a campaign issue ahead of September elections, with the Centre Party’s Vedum urging to "postpone the whole package until after the election."
In the meantime, the Labour Party is starting with implementing less controversial renewables and energy efficiency laws.
But Norway will soon have to grapple with more EU energy laws that double down on integration.
The 2019 laws have already been overwritten to fit with the EU’s target of slashing emissions by 55 percent, and both power market rules and governance arrangements were revised in the face of the 2022 energy crisis.
The EU is exploring setting more ambitious cross-country cable targets in its bid to lower energy prices across the bloc.
*first published in: Euractiv.com
By: N. Peter Kramer
