Proposal for a Council Directive on laying down calculation methods and reporting requirements pursuant to Directive 98/70/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council relating to the quality of petrol and diesel fuels

The Climate and Energy package adopted by the Council and Parliament on 22 April 2009 sought to achieve a 20% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2020. It contained a revision to Directive 98/70/EC on the quality of petrol and diesel.

The revised Directive obliges suppliers to reduce by 6% the life cycle greenhouse gas intensity of fuel and other (electric) energy supplied for use in road vehicles and of fuel for use in non-road mobile machinery by the end of the compliance period in 2020. The target would also facilitate meeting Member States’ non-ETS targets.

The article establishing this new element is Article 7a of the Directive which effectively establishes a "low carbon fuel standard" in Union legislation. The Directive also obliges suppliers to report from 2011 information on, inter alia, the greenhouse gas intensity of the fuel they have supplied to authorities designated by the Member States.

The 6% reduction is likely to be achieved through the use of biofuels, electricity and a reduction in the flaring and venting of gases at the extraction stage of fossil fuel feedstocks.

EUR-Lex: COM(2014)617: Follow the progress of this proposal through the decision-making procedure http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/HIS/?uri=COM:2014:617:FIN

ESO: Background information: Climate action: Reducing the carbon content of transport fuels http://www.europeansources.info/record/press-release-climate-action-reducing-the-carbon-content-of-transport-fuels/

EUR-Lex: SWD(2014)295: Executive summary of the impact assessment http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=SWD:2014:295:FIN

EUR-Lex: SWD(2014)296: Impact assessment http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=SWD:2014:296:FIN

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