BRUSSELS – An EU plan to gradually reduce the number of free CO2 permits given to industries has hit resistance from six governments that have demanded looser rules to help firms cope with the energy price impact of the Iran war, a document seen by Reuters showed.
The European Commission proposed new rules this month on the number of free emissions permits industries will receive until 2030.
With concerns mounting about the faltering competitiveness of the 27-member European Union, Brussels said the change would have the overall impact of lowering the carbon costs industry has to pay by €4 billion by the end of the decade, by reducing the number of free allocations handed out more slowly than initially expected.
But Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Greece, Poland, Romania and Slovakia have asked the Commission to instead freeze the number of the CO2 permits given out for free at last year’s levels.
In a joint paper seen by Reuters they said high energy prices, which have surged since the start of the Iran war at the end of February, were a risk to the competitiveness of energy intensive industries.
