In a letter dated Wednesday 30 April, around fifty European players in the energy sector called on the EU and the UK to strengthen their cooperation by linking their emissions trading systems (ETS), against a backdrop of “increasing costs and fierce global competition” for industries across Europe.
Better coordination could reduce electricity costs by €44 billion a year and cut emissions by 24% by 2040, according to the signatories, who cite a study carried out by the Baringa consultancy in 2024.
Linkage of the EU and UK Emissions Trading System would, they argue, “create price convergence between the two schemes, whilst avoiding competitive distortions, preventing carbon leakage and reducing costs for both EU and UK consumers”.
They add that linking them in this way would make it possible to avoid “the unintended negative impact of the EU Carbon Border Adjustment mechanism (CBAM) application”, in particular for clean electricity trading in the North Sea.
They also point out that the similarities between the two systems would make it possible to establish a “relatively straightforward” link from a technical and legal point of view.
Finally, the letter calls for the bilateral summit on 19 May to be used as an opportunity to open negotiations on this issue.
To see the letter: https://aeur.eu/f/gm9 (Original version in French by Pauline Denys)