Samenvatting

The role of the 21st century energy sector has developed into being essential for the drafting of the national security strategies of the world’s nations. Hence, the states develop particular approaches and strategies in order to attain energy security. Furthermore, those particular actions, undertaken by the states, have deep political and economic implications. Because of its unique mix of energy resources, and its status as a rising regional power, Romania served as the case study for this research. Consequently, the main research question of the paper was: “What are the political and economic implications of the search for energy security in Romania?”
Furthermore, a plethora of energy security classifications were analysed, with the aim of producing a standardized energy security definition. Hence, the concepts analysed in the research were delimited by clearly stated boundaries. Therefore, the definition advanced, regards energy security as: the availability associated with the continuous and sustainable accessibility of energy resources, used in an economically efficient manner. Moreover, the paper demonstrates that despite the EU’s best efforts, an EU-wide common approach in the area of energy security is still absent. That is mainly due to the Member States’ different patterns of energy consumption, production and needs, which ultimately, have to be addressed distinctively.
An assessment of the national energy sector in its entire complexity in Romania is given. Hence, the implications of the search for energy security in Romania were pointed out, answering the main research question. It was reiterated that the political and economic implications cannot be differentiated, as the two dimensions are inextricably linked in the area of energy and energy security. The implications observed, indicated that Romania, in its search for energy security, chooses to rely more intensely on TNCs and their investments, thus being more susceptible to foreign interests. Furthermore, the country is currently undergoing a political and economic reorientation towards the Caspian region, as a result of the high political risk and price volatility of the energy imports from Russia. Lastly, an implication of Romania’s search for energy security, indicates that the country is currently pushing towards the goal of becoming a regional energy exporter. On the basis of the observed implications, a concise list of recommendations was produced. Hence, in its search for energy security, Romania should be an advocate for the materialization of the EU energy union, should focus on addressing its urgent need for investments in the national energy sector and should focus its investments on renewable energy resources.