Sweden has pledged to block any attempts to weaken the European Union’s proposed Emissions Trading System (ETS) ahead of a political showdown next week that pits EU member states against one another.
Sweden’s EU Affairs Minister Jessika Rosencrantz told POLITICO that her country “will fight to maintain a strong Emissions Trading System (ETS)”. This stance comes amid a growing coalition of countries seeking to dilute the rules.
“As some member states seek to weaken Europe’s most effective climate tool, our position is clear: we will oppose any attempts to weaken the system,” Rosencrantz emphasized. The ETS is a cap-and-trade system designed to reduce emissions from the EU’s most polluting industries by requiring them to pay for each ton of emissions.
This system is currently under review by the European Commission, with results expected to be published by President Ursula von der Leyen’s team on July 17.
Confrontation over climate rules
Ten of Europe’s largest economies, including Poland, Italy, Czechia, and Austria, are publicly advocating for a significant weakening of this policy, arguing that it harms industry and raises costs.
However, according to Rosencrantz, “a weaker ETS would be detrimental to the climate and harmful to Europe’s competitiveness. Companies that have invested billions in the green transition should not be undermined simply because others want to lower the standards.”
Ireland, which assumed the six-month presidency of the Council of the EU in early June, must now negotiate a compromise on this issue.
In a letter obtained by POLITICO, Sweden has urged Ireland’s Minister for European Affairs to ensure “predictability” by maintaining the current ETS rules, including the inclusion of waste incineration within the system and extending the ETS to vessels with a gross tonnage of over 400 tons.
Spain, the Netherlands, Portugal, Luxembourg, and Sweden, along with Finland, have defended the ETS in its current form.
Source: Politico
