Cefic disappointed with the Commission’s proposals for reforming the EU Emissions Trading System

BRUSSELS, 20-7-2015 — /EuropaWire/ — Cefic is disappointed with  the Commission’s proposals for reforming the EU Emissions Trading System, unveiled today. The European chemical industry supports combating climate change and the Commission’s ambition to transform the EU into a competitive low carbon economy. Our industries do and will continue to play a pivotal role in delivering the technologies and solutions to reach this common goal. A cleverly designed Emissions Trading System could be an important instrument in the implementation of this common ambition.  Our industry has given constructive input to the public consultation on the ETS reform in this respect, but, unfortunately, the Commission has done little to address our concerns.

“There’s little fresh thinking”, commented Hubert Mandery, Director General of the European Chemical Industry Council. “The Commission proposals shy away from measures that would encourage carbon-efficient companies to invest in Europe. Overall, this makes matters worse for companies wanting to grow in Europe”.

The Commission has taken only a first step towards creating a more dynamic system for the allocation of allowances, coupled to a reserve. The intention appears to be to enable carbon efficient companies to grow without incurring undue carbon costs. Cefic and the Alliance of Energy-Intensive Industries have been calling for such a system. However, our initial reading is that the proposals do not go far enough.

Overall, the Commission’s proposals fall short of producing the necessary incentives to invest and grow in Europe. On the contrary, even Europe’s most carbon-efficient companies would face significant carbon costs in the years to come. The proposals would reduce carbon and investment leakage prevention measures by arbitrarily reducing the number of sectors eligible and the level of coverage for those still eligible. This will continue to seriously undermine the competitiveness of energy-intensive industries in the near future.

Cefic, together with the Alliance of Energy-Intensive Industries, calls on the Council and the Parliament to be bolder and ensure full, effective carbon leakage provisions and encourage growth.

Download the Press Release in PDF

Note to the editors:

The European chemical industry works within the Alliance of Energy-Intensive Industries to support the cost-effective global low-carbon transition necessary to combat climate change and deliver competitive low-carbon growth. Energy intensive industries compete on price in global commodity markets. Unlike the power sector, energy-intensive industries cannot pass through their carbon costs to consumers without losing market share to their non-EU competitors. Higher carbon costs inevitably erode margins and hinder the industry ability to provide a sufficient return on investments in the long term.

For further information on ETS visit the dedicated page

To download Cefic and Alliance positions click here.

About Cefic: Cefic, the European Chemical Industry Council, is the Brussels-based organisation representing the European chemical industry. Created in 1972, it represents 29,000 companies that produce around 17 per cent of the world’s chemicals and employ 1.2 million people. Learn more at www.cefic.org.

Contact

Valerie Rampi
+32 (0)2 676 7243    vra@cefic.be

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Cefic disappointed with the Commission’s proposals for reforming the EU Emissions Trading System