Ten European Union countries, including Cyprus, Italy and Poland, have urged the bloc to reconsider a new carbon price on fuel as part of a separate revision of the EU’s carbon market, according to a joint statement seen by Reuters.
Their opposition to the levy risks upending plans to update Brussels’ main climate change policy, the emissions trading system (ETS), and could put them at odds with supporters of the new charge such as Germany and Sweden.
The European Commission will on Friday propose a revision of the trading system, which requires power plants, factories, airlines and shipping firms to pay for their CO2 emissions.
In a statement shared with the Commission on Tuesday, the ten countries said the revision should also be used to rethink a new CO2 price, known as ETS2, which the EU plans to impose on heating and transport fuels from 2028. “European citizens should not be facing new climate taxes in current economic and geopolitical circumstances. ETS2 should be therefore addressed directly in the revision and carefully reconsidered,” the statement said.
Cyprus signed the statement along with Italy, Poland, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia. The statement also demanded changes to the existing carbon market, including a call for the EU to give industries more free CO2 permits without broad conditions attached. The Commission has indicated it only wants to extend more free permits to companies that agree to invest in decarbonising in Europe.
Brussels has already delayed the new fuel levy by a year, facing pushback from governments concerned it would raise consumer prices. Supporters argue the charge is crucial to driving the shift to cleaner cars and home heating systems, and that revenues from it will be reinvested in helping people switch to clean technologies, easing the burden on consumers.
The Commission has said it does not want to amend the charge further before it takes effect, to give companies time to prepare. However, when national governments and EU lawmakers negotiate and approve the wider carbon market changes, they could add amendments of their own, including to the ETS2 charge. The ten countries behind the statement have enough votes in the EU system to block amendments they oppose.
(With information from Reuters)
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