Refineries And Airlines To Be Given More Time for Carbon Reduction

The European Commission proposed on Wednesday that industries that face particular difficult in following its goals for carbon reduction, namely the oil refinery and airline sectors, be give more time to pay for permits to emit greenhouse gases under the European Union’s emissions trading scheme.
These industries would be given a slower build up and would be gradually phased into permits auctioning.  They would have to buy 20 percent of permits in 2013, with this number eventually rising to 100 percent in 2020.
“They will have a gradual increase, starting with 80 percent free allocation and decreasing in regular steps year by year until 2020,” Commission spokeswoman Barbara Helfferich stated.
She said the phase-in applied to all sectors covered by the EU’s Emissions Trading Scheme except the power sector.  The energy companies face steeper goals and will have to buy 100 percent of permits at auction from 2013.  Also, as yet unspecified energy-intensive industries will confront a special regime , which will be determined in 2010-2011.