Blog posts
2nd ETS trilogue: EU institutions agreed on almost nothing, except on perpetuating free allocation for the steel giants
The second ETS trilogue took place last week on October 11th. Tabled proposals on benchmarks regarding the steel…
Starting from scrap: transition to low-carbon steel can go faster with increased use of second-hand metal
New research by Sandbag indicates that a better use of end of life steel objects would help to speed up the reduction of emissions from the sector in Europe…
Reform, not a patch, will curb carbon price volatility
As energy prices hit record levels, the European Union’s carbon emissions permits – which hit €100 on futures markets in February – have been accused of making electricity too expensive, and although natural gas has a much larger responsibility, the carbon price also...
Risk of surplus with Market Stability Reserve – a short story
The EU is in the process of reforming its carbon market (EU ETS) in line with raising the bloc’s emission reduction target up to 55%, from 40% currently. Amongst the many features…
Emissions covered by the EU’s Emissions Trading Scheme rebound but allowances in circulation remain as high as in 2019
This analysis is based on estimations using data available as of 4 April 2022. It will be updated as more data is made available during the coming weeks. The European Commission has released the bulk of its data on reported emissions from EU ETS sectors for the year...
Urgent: CBAM needed to abolish free allocation under the EU ETS
Why was the CBAM proposed in the first place? In July 2021, the EU announced its Fit for 55 package - a sweeping set of climate and energy policy proposals which forms the EU’s approach to combat the effects of climate change. This package is the EU’s toolkit for...
New study shows limited trade impacts of European Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism
The impact of the likely Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) on European importers will be minor, according to a new report by Sandbag and E3G. The CBAM only covers 3.2 percent of goods imported into Europe, but 47 percent of the free emission allowances...
ETS reform: under the hype, a sense of déjà-vu
On 14 July a long-expected reform proposal of Europe’s carbon market was published by the European Commission. Far from addressing the market’s main issues, it barely adds a few patches and increases the risk of exceeding the cap. Cap: LRF, rebasing, maritime...