Exploring the Kosovan Regulatory Space: the Relationship Between Ethnicity and Regulatory Developments in the Energy Sector

How are regulatory developments shaped by ethnic, political and economic issues? We are interested in interrogating this research question through examining a critical case- energy regulation in Kosovo.

The Kosovan case is critical since a) the energy sector is peculiarly affected by inter-communal issues, apparently more than other network industries within the territory; and b) attitudes towards core regulatory goals (e.g. liberalisation) appear in Kosovo to be strongly correlated with ethnicity, which is not common in other regulatory contexts. Furthermore, developing an operational system for energy regulation in Kosovo is essential not only for domestic economic stability, but also for Kosovan accession to the EU and, importantly, for the longer-term prosperity and stability of Europe as a whole. The Kosovan case would provide rich data which would, more broadly, contribute towards a better understanding of regulatory processes and challenges in contexts including post-conflict contested states where ethnic groups may contest the regulatory space.

Our objectives are:

• To combine analytical perspectives drawn from studies of regulation with those from studies of ethnic conflict, to provide a more comprehensive theoretical framework for analyzing regulatory space
• To apply this novel theoretical framework to the context and content of regulatory developments in the Kosovan energy sector
• To generate a detailed understanding of the relationship between factors traditionally highlighted in studies of regulation (such as independence from economic interests) and those highlighted by studies of ethnic conflict (such as executive independence), when explaining regulatory developments
• To explore the comparative potential of the Kosovan regulatory space.
  

We aim to achieve these objectives by, first, mapping out the key elements of regulatory space within the chosen critical case study, and considering how these interact: who are the most influential actors, and how does the regulatory agency interact with them? To what extent does Kosovo’s contested statehood challenge regulatory processes (including those focused on promoting energy security)? Secondly, we will attempt to identify the strategies used by different actors to influence the regulatory process and their impact. Thirdly, we will try to ascertain to what degree these influences can be understood within an economic framework, as opposed to within the framework of studies of ethnic conflict.