Governing the NGEU in Spain

The energy transition was a central pillar in the design of the Next Generation EU (NGEU), conceived to address Member States’ structural challenges and to promote more sustainable and democratic economies. While existing research has largely focused on assessing the achievement of environmental targets, the broader impact of these funds on national governance systems remains underexplored. In key policy areas such as the energy transition, questions arise regarding how authority over resources and their implementation has been distributed across levels of government. This paper examines the formal and practical governance structures of energy policy in Spain within the framework of the NGEU. Drawing on European implementation studies, the analysis shows a trend towards the centralisation of decision-making authority by the national government, while regional authorities retain limited capacity to effectively articulate and channel their demands through vertical governance mechanisms. The findings suggest that, rather than fostering more cooperative and decentralised arrangements, the implementation of the NGEU in the energy sector has reinforced pre-existing centralising dynamics in Spanish energy governance.