European Union Emissions Trading Scheme

Author(s):  
Antonio Marcio Ferreira Crespo ◽  
Chun Wang

The European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU-ETS), launched in 2005, is one of the most important market-driven initiatives in support to the global commitment to fight the climate changes and foster sustainable development. The scheme design evolution, comprising four phases, was characterized by continued ineffectiveness in driving emissions reduction, mainly for industries outside the power generation sector. This chapter brings an analysis of the EU-ETS design evolution, aiming at providing an overview on how the EU-ETS design features improvements impacted its effectiveness. The emissions trading scheme's main design features are listed, followed by the description of the EU-ETS design evolution in terms of scope, allowances allocation process, and emissions cap (among others). The greenhouse gases emissions trends, the carbon price behavior, and the availability of allowances in the EU carbon market are presented and discussed as key factors in support to the EU-ETS effectiveness assessment.

2011 ◽  
Vol 7 (14) ◽  
pp. 21
Author(s):  
Ignacio Bachiller Méndez ◽  
José Luis Fernández-Cavada Labat ◽  
Jaime Martín Juez

The authors have assessed the regulatory framework set by the UNFCCC (United Nations Frame Convention on Climate Change), the Kyoto Protocol and its Flexible Mechanisms, including the CDM (Clean Development Mechanism), and the EU ETS (European Union Emissions Trading Scheme). After this general overview, the article shows how afforestation and reforestation activities have been incorporated into the CDM process and its current consideration under the EU ETS. Transaction costs of these types of CDM project activities are analyzed, together with the state of the temporary allowances market. Finally, taking into account the above mentioned elements, the authors draw several conclusions on the opportunity and expectations of the future development of this market.


2009 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 197-232
Author(s):  
Jason Anderson ◽  

AbstractSince the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) came into being in 2003, both the opportunity and incentive to link the EU ETS to other cap-and-trade schemes that aim to reduce greenhouse gases has increased dramatically. This paper provides an overview of the key design features of existing and emerging emissions trading schemes around the world. It then considers the political and technical significance of these design features for a decision on whether or not to link the EU ETS to these schemes and explores the possible legal nature of an agreement that could link various potential linking partners at the national and sub-national levels.


2012 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 475-506
Author(s):  
Christina Voigt

AbstractFrom 1 January 2012, all flights departing from or arriving at the European Union are covered by the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS). Amendments were made to Directive 2003/87/EC by Directive 2008/101/EC with the objective of reducing climate change impacts attributable to aviation, but also in order to avoid distortions of competition. The scheme now includes all airlines, including those from third countries, and accounts for emissions that occur partly outside the airspace of EU Member States. A large number of third countries claim that the extension of the Emissions Trading Scheme to legs of flights outside EU territory violates the principle of state sovereignty and deny the jurisdiction of the EU to regulate emissions that occur beyond its borders. So far, the validity of the EU regulation has been challenged by a claim brought by US and Canadian air carriers. They contended that, in adopting the Directive, the EU infringed principles of customary international law—in particular the principle of state sovereignty and the prohibition of extraterritorial application—as well as various international agreements. On 21 December 2011, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that the inclusion of emissions from aviation in the EU ETS is valid. In response, Chinese and Indian carriers threatened not to pay the charge, while US airlines pledged to consider other options. This chapter analyses the judgment of the Court and the opinion of Advocate General Kokott in this case. Particular attention is given to the question of extraterritorial jurisdiction and the understanding of state sovereignty in the context of global climate change mitigation. The chapter argues that the Court missed an opportunity to contribute to the clarification of the law on jurisdiction and to the development of climate law.


2014 ◽  
Vol 41 (4) ◽  
pp. 615-628 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andros Gregoriou ◽  
Jerome Healy ◽  
Nicola Savvides

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the validity of the cost of carry model by examining the time series properties of the deviation between future and spot prices in the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU-ETS) over the time period 2005-2012. The paper utilizes a non-linear mean reverting adjustment mechanism, and discovers that although deviations of future from spot prices can exhibit a region of non-stationary behaviour, overall they are stationary indicating market efficiency in the trading of carbon permits. Design/methodology/approach – The methodology involves non-linear mean reverting unit root tests. Findings – The findings provide insights into the functioning of the EU-ETS market. They suggest that it is informationally efficient and does not permit arbitrage between spots and futures. Originality/value – The authors are the first study to examine efficiency in the EU-ETS by investigating the validity of the cost of carry model. The authors are also the only study to look at efficiency in both Phase I and Phase II of the scheme.


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