Brussels, 24/02/2011 (Agence Europe) - The member states of the EU have agreed to move forward to strengthen the integrity of the European carbon market, which was recently hit by cyber criminal attacks. The new measures proposed by the Commission on Wednesday 23 February to improve the security of the national registries of online transactions met with the approval of the representatives of the 27, meeting within the climate change committee of the EU (EUROPE 10322). Their blessing comes with the condition that these measures must not be too expensive.
In the opinion of the experts, the Commission's proposals could constitute an useful guide for the discussion on the changes and the rules applicable to the national online registries. Several delegations stressed the need to find a fair balance between the need for reinforced security requirements and the need to limit the administrative costs of the new measures for authorities and businesses participating in the ETS. The discussion on the emissions quotas which were fraudulently acquired in order to be sold on for cash confirmed the complex nature of the national legislations and differences between them.
The representatives of the 27, wishing to restore confidence in the common market, agreed to discuss the issue in greater depth at the forthcoming meeting of the climate change committee in March. (A.N./transl.fl)