Press Release: Emissions trading: Commission decides on first set of national allocation plans for the 2008-2012 trading period

The European Commission has confirmed its strong commitment to ensuring that the EU and Member States achieve their greenhouse gas emission targets under the Kyoto Protocol. In deciding on the first 10 national plans for allocating CO2 emission allowances to energy-intensive industrial plants for the 2008-2012 trading period under the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS), the Commission reduced the allowances by almost 7 per cent below the emissions proposed by the national allocation plans and 7 per cent below the 2005 emissions. The plans concern Germany, Greece, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Slovakia, Sweden and the United Kingdom. They account for 42 % of the allowances allocated in the first trading period of the EU ETS, from 2005 to 2007. The objective of the EU ETS is to ensure that greenhouse gas emissions from the energy and industry sectors covered are cut at least cost to the economy, thus helping the EU and its Member States to meet their emission commitments under the Kyoto Protocol.

European Commission: DG Communication: MEMO/06/452 http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=MEMO/06/452&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

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