Coal Transition Pathways in the European Union: Governance and Regional Transformation in Germany, Poland, and Czechia

The European Union’s climate-neutrality objective is reshaping coal-dependent regions, but transition pathways differ according to historical coal dependence, institutional capacity, national energy systems, and regional economic structures. Coal phase-outs represent not merely a sector-specific energy shift, but a systemic socio-spatial transformation that reconfigures regional planning and territorial dynamics. This study examines how governance coordination, phase-out clarity, labour-market instruments, innovation strategies, and post-mining land reuse operate across three major Central European coal regions: the Ruhr Area (Germany), Upper Silesia (Poland), and the Moravian–Silesian Region (Czechia). It applies a qualitative, structured comparative review based on academic literature, policy and strategic documents, official statistics, and three flagship redevelopment cases within the framework of the EU RFCS-funded RAISING project. The comparison shows that the Ruhr Area’s long-term, corporatist coordination has facilitated structural diversification and land reuse over several decades, though challenges regarding job quality and socio-spatial inequalities persist. In Upper Silesia, negotiated agreements foster regional consensus, while the multi-decade transition timeline reflects national energy-security priorities, supply-security constraints, and institutional complexity. In the Moravian–Silesian Region, early reactive restructuring in the 1990s contrasts with a more coordinated contemporary phase leveraging EU transition funding and strategic investment. Across all three cases, transition outcomes are mediated by place-specific conditions rather than formal closure speed alone. The study demonstrates that while core principles of early planning, multi-level coordination, and integrated asset reuse offer valuable insights, their application remains context-dependent, highlighting the necessity for place-sensitive European and national transition policies.