VILNIUS TECH Library invites you to follow the published new dissertations. The dissertation „State economic decisions for energy security“ prepared at VILNIUS TECH by Tomas Karpavičius. The dissertation was prepared in 2021–2025. Scientific consultant – Dr Tomas Baležentis.
The dissertation was defended at the public meeting of the Dissertation Defence Council of the Scientific Field of Economics in the Aula Doctoralis Meeting Hall of Vilnius Gediminas Technical University at 9 a.m. on 6 February 2026.
This doctoral dissertation examines the role of national economic decisions in shaping a country’s energy security, with a particular focus on the electricity sector. While energy security is often discussed through the lens of physical supply and infrastructure, this research adopts a broader, policy-oriented perspective, viewing it as a result of strategic public interventions, regulatory choices, and economic planning. The dissertation develops an integrative framework to evaluate energy security outcomes, drawing on a combination of methodological tools: indicator-based assessment, policy content analysis and multi-criteria decision-making (specifically, the Kernel-based Comprehensive Assessment (Ker-CA) method). Four peer-reviewed journal articles form the empirical backbone of the dissertation, each addressing distinct yet interrelated aspects of state influence on energy sustainability and resilience. Lithuania is used as the core case study, analysed in the context of European Union (EU) climate and energy policy. A composite index was constructed to measure national progress across key dimensions of energy security – namely, reliability, affordability, accessibility, and environmental sustainability – while also classifying 65 indicators by their sensitivity to government policy. The dissertation also provides a comparative evaluation of public service obligation schemes in four EU member states, highlighting how different policy designs impact energy prices, infrastructure investment and sectoral stability. The First Chapter presents a literature review of the concept, definitions, dimensions, and indicators of energy security, as well as the role of the state in ensuring energy security. The Second Chapter outlines the methodological framework of the research, including indicator classification, analysis of the Public Service Obligation (PSO) levy mechanism, development of a national energy and climate policy achievement index and the application of the Kernel-based Comprehensive Assessment (KerCA) method for the comparative evaluation of EU countries. The Third Chapter presents empirical results: classification of electricity sector indicators by their sensitivity to public policy, a comparative analysis of PSO levy mech-anisms, national index results for Lithuania, and a multi-criteria assessment of EU countries. The chapter concludes with a synthesis of findings, demonstrating the impact of state economic decisions on the four key di-mensions of energy security. The dissertation contributes to the academic literature by advancing a replicable assessment methodology that links policy design with measurable energy security outcomes. Ultimately, this research strengthens the evidence base for designing robust, future-proof energy policies in times of uncertainty and transition.
Doctoral dissertation readers can search via VILNIUS TECH Virtual Library.
