EU Emissions Trading System (ETS)

On 3 July, the European Parliament voted in favour of the European Commission’s (EC) proposal to postpone the auctioning of 900 million emission allowances (backloading) of the EU’s Emissions Trading System (ETS) for the 2013-2020 period (third ETS trading period). This represents the second attempt to rescue the EU ETS after the European Parliament voted against the EC’s proposal on 16 April 2013. The European Parliament’s endorsement of the proposal gives a mandate to the text’s rapporteur to begin negotiations with the Council in order to reach a first-reading agreement.

Latest Developments On Horizon 2020

On 25 June, the Irish EU presidency reached an agreement with the European Parliament and the European Commission, after nine “trilogue” meetings held during the last six months. They agreed on a 70.2 billion euro budget for the next R&D funding programme, running from 2014 to 2020. The figure of 70.2 billion euro is final, although the overall EU budget still needs a final sign off by EU member states.

ETN Annual General Meeting And Workshop

The ETN Annual General Meeting and Workshop took place on 16-17 April 2013 in Pisa, Italy. In the afternoon of 15 April, members also had the opportunity to visit ENEL’s Sesta testing Facilities. During the event, over 85 participants joined to discuss ETN’s activities over the past year and its outlook for the future.

ETN Article In Power Engineering International

Christer Bjorkqivst, Managing Director of ETN has been invited to write an article in the Power Engineering International Magazine. The article has been published in the Guest editorial section of the PEI Magazine in April 2013.

The European Parliament Rejects The Back-Loading Proposal

On 16 April, the European Parliament voted against the European Commission’s proposal, known as “back-loading”, aimed to reverse the falling price of carbon that has resulted from a surplus of permits in the ETS market. The vote was far from being unanimous: out of 712 Members of the European Parliament present, 334 supported the rejection the proposal, whereas 315 voted against the rejection and 63 abstained. The carbon market fell by the highest rate ever following the vote, to a record low price of 2.63 euro.

The Future Climate And Energy Package 2030

On 27 March 2013, the European Commission (EC) launched a series of papers and consultations aimed at developing the 2030 framework for EU climate change and energy policy: the long awaited Green Paper on a 2030 framework for climate and energy policies, as well as a progress report on renewables and a consultative communication on the future of carbon capture and storage. The documents also aim to prepare the ground for the 2015 negotiations on an international agreement on climate change, which should be agreed at COP21 in France.

The Council Adopted The Energy Infrastructure Regulation

The Council adopted on 21 March 2013 the regulation on guidelines for trans-European energy infrastructure.

MFF: European Parliament Rejects Current Deal

On 13 March, the European Parliament firmly rejected in its current form the future Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) proposal reached by EU leaders on 8 February. For the first time in history, the EU budget is smaller than its previous version.

ETN Has Submitted Additional Comments To The Industrial Emissions Directive (IED)

In a joint effort among members, ETN has submitted additional comments to the LCP BREF Review Team of the Joint Research Center of the European Commission (EC) regarding the Industrial Emissions Directive (IED). For more information and to view the comments, please click here.

Latest Developments On The EU’s Emissions Trading System (ETS)

On 19 February, the European Parliament’s environment committee (ENVI) voted in favour of the European Commission’s proposal to postpone the auctioning in the framework of the EU’s Emissions Trading System (ETS) of 900 million emission allowances (backloading) for the 2013-2020 period (third ETS trading period).