EU approves carbon market reform proposals for 2019
European Union has approved new carbon market reformsfor 2019, according to an announcement on Wednesday by Latvia, the holder of the EU Presidency
The European Union has approved new reforms of the bloc's carbon market for 2019, according to an announcement on Wednesday by Latvia, the holder of the EU Presidency.
The proposal to introduce a Market Stability Reserve (MSR) under the Emissions Trading System (ETS) from Jan. 1, 2019, was adopted at a meeting of diplomats representing the 28 nations of the EU.
The Latvian Presidency said: "Member states adopt Market Stability Reserve file to improve operation of carbon market! MSR will be operational from 2019".
Alexis Dutertre, France's deputy permanent representative to the EU in Brussels, confirmed that a majority of EU member states approved a final deal on the MSR.
Six states - Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Hungary and Greece - voted against the proposal, according to media reports.
The MSR is designed to withdraw some carbon permits with an overabundance having depressed prices in the ETS.
EU environment ministers are due to approve the deal at a meeting in Luxembourg in June and then a session of the European Parliament will consider it in July.
Unallocated allowances will be transferred to the MSR in 2020 and their future usage will be decided on as part of a broader review of the ETS being carried out by the European Commission, the Latvian presidency said.
Estimates of the number of unallocated allowances vary from 300 million to around 800 million by 2020.
The Presidency of the Council of the EU is responsible for the functioning of the Council of the European Union, the upper house of the EU legislature and the post rotates among the member states of the EU every six months.