What was meant to be Europe’s coherent transformation toward sustainability has, in practice, become a maze of overlapping regulations, conflicting objectives, and competing national interests. This complexity has led Europe’s energy system today to become extremely intricate and challenging to navigate.
Adding to this confusion is the reduction of Russian gas and hydrocarbons, which has redrawn the map of dependencies and rewritten the rules of engagement. Investors and partners who still see opportunity in Europe often struggle to interpret what exactly needs to be done to find their place in this market.
That is where the Partnership for Transatlantic Energy Cooperation (P-TEC), taking place in Athens today and tomorrow, has proven its unique value.
### What is P-TEC?
P-TEC is an annual gathering of public and private energy leaders hosted by the US Department of Energy, in partnership with Central and Eastern European countries and the Atlantic Council. More than just a forum for exchange, it is becoming a compass. On a continent governed by directives and evolving standards, P-TEC serves as a guide through the labyrinth, helping partners understand not only the current rules but also how these rules might evolve.
### The Challenge of Europe’s Energy Transition
Europe’s current regulatory architecture often reflects good intentions undermined by practical contradictions. For example, the European Investment Bank (EIB) no longer finances natural gas projects—even in regions like Moldova or the Western Balkans, which remain heavily dependent on Russian supply. This policy leaves these regions in a geopolitical dead end at precisely the time when diversification should be a top priority.
The European Union’s Methane Emissions Regulation (MER) illustrates how the EU’s climate ambitions can sometimes create operational uncertainty. Approved in 2024, MER includes measures to reduce methane emissions from fossil fuel operations. However, even large and experienced companies struggle to interpret what compliance means in practice—from methane reporting and certification to national implementation pathways.
This experience has shown that Europe’s energy transition is not only about technology but also about regulatory literacy. Understanding the system has become as critical as investing in it.
Similarly, the EU’s inconsistent treatment of nuclear power—which is recognized as a zero-carbon source, yet excluded by some green financing frameworks—continues to divide member states and deter investors. Such contradictions do not make Europe greener; they make it more fragile by illustrating the gap between ambition and execution, between a decarbonization agenda that aspires to lead the world and a market reality that too often punishes pragmatism.
### P-TEC’s Dual Mission
P-TEC’s mission should be twofold:
1. **Translator:** Continue helping US and regional partners understand the dense network of European rules, taxonomies, and climate instruments.
2. **Architect:** Evolve into a space where transatlantic cooperation contributes to a more coherent, realistic, and resilient European framework.
This evolution requires a shared strategic vision focused on connectivity.
### Connectivity and Resilience
The North-South energy corridor, linking the Baltic, Adriatic, and Black Seas, remains the backbone of regional resilience. Expanding interconnections and ensuring market interoperability are not just technical goals but also instruments of sovereignty.
Here, the United States can add real value through investment and project expertise, turning political declarations into tangible results.
At the same time, P-TEC can demonstrate that much can already be achieved within the existing system. The recent success in enabling gas deliveries to Moldova under EU market principles showed that rules can be instruments of empowerment rather than paralysis.
### Looking Ahead: Accelerating Change
While the rules are changing, they are not evolving quickly or deeply enough: gas infrastructure and new nuclear builds remain caught in slow bureaucratic processes. P-TEC provides an opportunity for Europe to accelerate needed change and build momentum, especially with an eye toward the 2026 Three Seas Initiative Summit in Croatia.
This shift requires recognizing that the real opportunity lies not in creating new institutions but in enhancing interoperability among those that already exist. This includes P-TEC and the Three Seas Initiative, which share the same DNA: regional integration, diversification, and partnership with the United States.
Together, these platforms could become Europe’s version of a transatlantic “operating system” — a modular architecture that balances climate ambition with competitiveness and energy security.
### Investing in Regulatory Literacy
To achieve this vision, both sides of the Atlantic must invest in more than infrastructure. They must invest in **regulatory literacy**—the ability to navigate, interpret, and align complex policy frameworks that increasingly dictate who can build what and where.
This is not a bureaucratic detail; it is a strategic necessity.
Europe’s future energy landscape will be shaped not only by new technologies but also by new understandings. P-TEC stands at the intersection of both, guiding the evolution of Europe’s energy operating system—one that is pragmatic, open to innovation, and resilient enough to serve both sides of the Atlantic.
In a continent governed by rules, this guidance may produce the most valuable export of all: clarity.
—
**About the Author**
Michał Kurtyka is a distinguished fellow with the Atlantic Council Global Energy Center.
**Related Event**
Partnership for Transatlantic Energy Cooperation (P-TEC) — Athens, Greece
—
*Image credit: Athens (Constantinos Kollias, Unsplash)*
https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/energysource/europes-energy-operating-system-p-tec-as-the-north-star-in-a-european-maze/
