Introduction
The process of liberalization and de-regulation within the fifteen European Union member states has
led to widespread industry restructuring, creating energy and utility markets that are more complex, and
certainly more competitive, than ever before.
This paper and associated presentation will address these issues. They will address the political and
economic changes ongoing in Europe, the European energy and utility markets, the European gas market,
the challenges facing European natural gas transmission companies today, their impact on organization
and operation, and expectations for geospatial, asset management and related IS/IT initiatives.
Several case studies will be presented on the use of GIS and related geospatial technology to meet key
process/application improvements in the areas of cathodic protection and corrosion monitoring; contractor
notifications and one-call; emergency response; pipeline integrity management; pipeline maintenance;
planning, engineering and design; right-of-way and property management; and sales and marketing.
The European Union
Any discussion on Europe first requires an understanding of the significant political and economic
transitions that have, and that continue, to take place given the establishment and growing influence of the
European Union. Formerly known as the European Community (EC) or European Economic Community
(EEC), the European Union (EU) is a union of states within Europe, a supranational organization
established on November 1, 1993 when the Maastricht Treaty – also known as the Treaty on the European
Union – was ratified by the members of the original European Community. Currently, the EU has fifteen
(15) members. There are several pending memberships from a number of central and eastern European
countries (accession countries), which could see membership, rise to thirty countries over the next two to
five years.
The EU is dedicated to increasing economic integration and strengthening cooperation among its
member states. The EU (see Table 1.0 for comparisons with North America) has created a single market
without internal barriers to trade, has a market potential of more than 380 million consumers (more than
500 million once expansion moves forward), has a combined GDP of more than $7.5 trillion, and
represents the largest trading group in the world with more than 19% of world exports (by comparison,
the USA has 16%).
The EU goes well beyond the “trade agreements” such as the North American Free Trade Agreement
(NAFTA) across Canada, the United States, and Mexico. Under the Maastricht Treaty, European
citizenship was granted to citizens of each member state. Customs and immigration agreements were
enhanced to allow European citizens greater freedom to live, work, or study in any of the member states,
and border controls were relaxed. The evolution of the EU has been multi-faceted with the following
goals and objectives:
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Extending the European Common Market and European Community and looking at how the
countries and “common” market could benefit by functioning as a borderless group of nation
states.
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Easing trade between countries by allowing goods and services to move across borders without
custom duties or any quotas.
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Creating legislation and governing through a European Commission and European Parliament,
the latter a body of the EU whose members are directly elected by the citizens of member states.
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Establishing a common European currency. The Euro dollar became the standard form of
currency in most member states (the UK and Denmark being an exception) effective January 1,
2002.
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Dismantling of many government-owned enterprises and closed country markets through
liberalization and deregulation. This has completely reshaped certain industries, especially
Europe’s energy and utilities industry – addressed further below.
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Taking a more proactive role on global issues such as the environment, defense issues, and
foreign aide.
