Introduction

Gas markets in the EU legacy have indeed changed since the turn of the millennium. For gas consuming countries, access to gas resources is of crucial national importance. Countries have built and developed their national gas markets, both institutionally and technically, according to national interest positions. They implemented varied institutional models to organize their domestic gas market in congruence with national interest positions. The national institutional models each in their specific way accounted for the “failures” of gas markets, such as the high economic risks associated with the exploitation of gas fields and investments in pipeline infrastructures, the positive external effects of gas pipeline infrastructures, and natural monopoly characteristics. This book provides an overview of recent dynamics in several national gas markets in Europe, in order to contribute to a better understanding of the trends and dynamics in European gas. Analyzing and understanding the background and characteristics of national gas markets, one can properly understand the developments in European gas. This book covers several decades of change in national gas markets and contributes to understanding these changes in terms of political preferences, constraints and opportunities of the gas pipeline infrastructures, and economic and political performances.