Carbon Trading Market: we cannot afford higher energy prices

"We cannot afford a rise in Europe's energy prices. We call on the European Parliament's Environment Committee to put the proposal of delaying the auctioning of 900 million carbon allowances to a plenary vote. It seems that withholding a significant number of carbon permits, the backloading proposal is trying to fix a mechanism that is not broken", said Eija-Riitta Korhola MEP and Richard Seeber MEP following the EP's Environment Committee vote on changes to the auction scheme of CO2 emissions allowances. MEPs decided today to support the European Commission's proposal and will vote next week on whether to go ahead with a plenary vote or go straight into three-way negotiations with the European Commission and the Council.

"Accepting the European Commission's proposal to change the rules for emissions trade would mean confusing the markets and would result in higher electricity prices for consumers and industries; adding an even higher price tag of EU climate policy. Reaching the EU climate target reducing CO2 emissions by 20% in 2020 is on track", Eija-Riitta Korhola said.

Richard Seeber, EPP Group Co-Coordinator in the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee, warns against market interventions: "The underlying idea and achievement of the EU's CO2 reduction policy is that it is a market-based instrument. We should not abandon the market logic and go back to a centrally planned economy just because the prices are not what certain people want."

Richard Seeber recalled that global CO2 emissions rise when industries are pushed outside the EU by too high emission costs: "This would not help anybody. EU industries would be weakened and more greenhouse gas would be produced outside Europe."

The European Commission's proposal was rejected in January in the EP's Industry, Research and Energy Committee.