The EU emissions trading system (EU ETS) is a cornerstone of the EU’s policy to combat climate change and its key tool for reducing greenhouse gas emissions cost-effectively. It is the world’s first major carbon market and remains the biggest one.It involves the introduction of a limit on the total emissions of certain greenhouse gases emitted by installations covered by the system. Over time, this limit is lowered, which causes total emissions to fall.
Greenhouse gas emissions from all operators covered by the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) in 2019 fell by a total of 8.7 percent compared to 2018 levels. Stationary installations dropped by 9% and aviation emissions increased by 1%
According to EU EST data, a total of 1,527 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent were generated from stationary installations (power plants and production installations) in 2019. The largest reduction was achieved in the electricity sector, where emissions dropped by 15%. In contrast, emissions from industry fell by 2% and emission reductions have been observed in most sectors, including iron and steel, cement, chemicals and refineries.
Verified emissions of aircraft operators totaled 68.14 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2019. This was about 1% more than in 2018
Pursuant to the EU ETS, all fixed installation operators and airlines were required to submit their verified emissions from 2019 by March 31, 2020 and to surrender the appropriate number of allowances by April 30, 2020. Currently, the third EU ETS period that began 1 January 2013 and will last until 31 December 2020. Regulations amending the EU ETS for the years 2021-2030 were adopted in 2018 and will apply from January next year.