Brussels, 04/07/2013 (Agence Europe) - It came as a pleasant surprise to more than one that the European Parliament voted on Wednesday 3 July in favour of short-term reform of the ETS through a temporary back freezing of 900 million surplus quotas. This vote, however, left a number dissatisfied and unhappy, particularly industry and the Chambers of Commerce, while environmental NGOs are relieved, though far from enthusiastic (see EUROPE 10880).
Eurochambres, which completely rejects any intervention by the European Commission on the market to obtain increased prices per carbon tonne, did not hide its disappointment. It called on the 28 member states of the EU to reject this economically unjustifiable measure.
Arnaldo Abruzzini, Secretary General of Eurochambres said: “Backloading is a clear intervention in a market-based system. Even a one-off intervention undermines the principles of the Emissions Trading System and will make it more difficult for businesses to produce cost effectiveness in the EU. In a period when the economic situation is already very fragile, such actions put growth and employment at stake and increase the probability of carbon leakage. It is thus the wrong signal at the wrong time”.
CEFIC, which represents the European chemical industry, said that this measure would create uncertainty for ETS participants and would not necessarily guarantee that the revenue generated by the trading would be recycled back into innovative low carbon technologies. Hubert Mandery, the director general of CEFIC said: “The proposals for backloading will not help. They signaled a willingness to intervene in the market and push up prices, risking weakening competitiveness and distracting investment from innovation”. (AN/transl.fl)