The EU Regulatory Observatory’s new report “Unlocking the True Value of Our Energy Union” analyses the European Commission’s Affordable Energy Action Plan, which claims €130 billion in annual savings by 2030. While welcoming tax cuts and faster permitting, the study criticises the plan’s internal contradictions: pursuing lower prices while forcing rapid decarbonisation, centralising markets yet demanding efficiency, and relying on immature technologies. Scoring only 5.15/10 for liberal credentials, the report warns that price controls and administrative interventions will raise costs and distort markets.