EU Commission Proposes Softer Carbon Market Rules for Industry
The overhaul would slow the emissions cap cut and keep free permits longer, while directing more ETS revenue to industrial decarbonisation.
- On Friday, July 17, 2026, the European Commission unveiled reforms to the Emissions Trading System , proposing slower annual emission cap reductions and extended free permits to balance industrial competitiveness with long-term climate targets.
- Mounting pressure from carbon-intensive economies like Italy and Poland prompted the overhaul, as high energy costs and industrial concerns about competitiveness forced the European Union to reconsider the scheme's pace.
- The proposal slows the annual emissions cap decline to 3.7% from 2031 and 1.7% from 2036, extends free allowances until 2038 for decarbonizing companies, and expands the ETS to include international flights under 5,000 km.
- Brussels plans to mandate that governments reinvest 50% of ETS revenues into domestic industries, while the American Chamber of Commerce warned the international flight provisions could risk "potentially provoking retaliatory measures from key international partners."
- EU member states and the European Parliament will negotiate final legislation over the coming year, with the reform becoming a political flashpoint between defenders like Spain and Scandinavian nations versus industry-focused critics.
119 Articles
119 Articles
The EU Commission wants to ease the rules for emissions trading with pollution rights for carbon dioxide. It is planned that the annual ceiling for industrial CO2 emissions will decrease more slowly from 2031 onwards than previously foreseen. Companies could thus emit more greenhouse gases for longer.
The European Commission will make it a little easier for companies to continue emitting CO2, but promises to achieve its climate target.
The revision of the emissions trading system gives companies more flexibility. Sweden and Finland urge Brussels not to weaken the rules of the carbon marketThe Green Deal 2.0, a revamped version of the Green Pact that is more supportive of the industrial world, is taking shape and continues to provoke heated debates. On Friday, the European Commission presented its much-anticipated overhaul of the ETS scheme for Emissions Trading System. Brussel…
ROME (ITALPRESS) - On the proposal to revise the ETS, we welcome the choice of strengthening the instruments to support investment in industrial decarbonisation. At the same time, crucial aspects remain that will have to be addressed during the negotiations, starting from the definition of the "benchmarks' and the system of allocation of free quotas: on these issues it will be essential to ensure a balanced regulatory framework, able to protect …
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