Euro-CASE

MCC examined paths to reforms of the EU ETS with international scientists.

[Translate to EN:] Blick auf die Euro-CASE-Teilnehmer Foto: acatech

13.02.2014

The EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) was initially designed as an incentive for power companies and industry to switch to climate-friendly technologies. However, while the price companies had to pay for each tonne of carbon emissions was still around 25 euros in 2005—the year EU ETS was introduced—it had dropped to around 5 euros per tonne by the end of 2013. Thus, the overall incentive to switch to new and carbon-free technologies has dropped.

 

Recognized international scientists and experts now seek to identify new paths to reforms. They discuss the main current and future challenges of the EU ETS and examine how the system influences, and is influenced by, other government policies, such as the promotion of renewable energies.

 

 

 

The Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change (MCC) was holding, together with Euro-CASE, the Euro-CASE Energy Platform meeting, taking place in Brussels on February 12 and 13. It was co-chaired by Ottmar Edenhofer, director at the MCC and chief economist at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, and Bernard Tardieu, chairman of the Standing Committee Energy and Climatic Change at the French Academy for Technical Science (NATF). Some seventy scientists and representatives from the European Commission and from associations and industry attended — among them Robert N. Stavins, Harvard University; Jos Delbeke, Director-General for Climate Action, European Commission; and Brian Ager, Secretary General of the European Round Table of Industrialists.

 

The European Commission only recently had revealed its energy and climate targets to be met by 2030. These include a recommendation for a reform of the EU ETS: a mechanism by which CO2 permits are withdrawn from the market when there is an excess of certificates. But the reform proposal is controversial. The Euro-CASE meeting aims to conduct evaluations and develop alternative reform options. The results will be integrated into a policy brief, to be submitted to the European Commission in the fall. 

 

Euro-CASE is an independent non-profit organization of national academies of engineering, applied sciences and technologies from 21 European countries. It acts as a permanent forum for exchange and consultation between European institutions, industry and research. Euro-CASE provides impartial, independent and balanced policy advice on technological and innovation issues. Through its member academies it has access to around 6,000 experts.

 

All presentations from the workshop on the ETS reform options are publicly available.