Energy Crisis Revolution?

Since 2021, the EU has been threatened by an energy crisis, causing a dramatic rise in energy prices and the inflation rate. Among the measures adopted by the EU in response is Regulation 1854/2022, introducing a solidarity contribution to be levied on the surplus profits of companies in the energy market. Through the lens of historical institutionalism, this paper analyzes the solidarity contribution to understand what kind of institutional change, if any, it represents for EU fiscal integration. The paper finds that, rather than a revolution, the adoption of the solidarity contribution reflects path-dependence. That is, with the adoption of Regulation 1854/2022, the EU has maintained a fiscal regulatory approach to the energy sector that does not substantially depart from previous fiscal governance modes.