Interest Group Coalitions in the European Union

This book investigates why European associations form interest coalitions in the field of EU energy policy, which strategies these coalitions pursue to influence the EU institutions, and how persistent they are over time. In this context, questions concerning the transparency of European decision-making are approached: While formal coalitions have established an administrative body to coordinate and represent the coalition’s activities, informal coalitions usually lack organizational structures and a spokesperson. Therefore, they do not appear in any kind of lobbying register, which, however, contradicts the core principles laid down in the Commission’s White Paper on European Governance.