International flights arriving in Europe from destinations within 5,000 km will be required to pay for their CO2 emissions from 2029 as part of a major overhaul of the EU’s emissions trading system announced on Friday (17 July).
The review of the Emissions Trading System (ETS), which offers economic incentives to businesses to reduce their carbon emissions, and sets a price on carbon, has already been subject to a major lobbying effort that will now intensify as the proposal hits the European Parliament and EU Council for amendments.
“Aviation is the only major sector where emissions are going up rather than down. At the same time, the EU faces a level playing field issue: currently ETS only covers the EEA [European Economic Area] and quite a few countries, particularly in the Gulf, subsidise their airlines,” climate commissioner Wopke Hoekstra told reporters on Friday (17 July).
Elsewhere, industrial companies will continue to receive free emissions allowances beyond 2030 — but with a catch, one of the main reforms to the ETS since 2005.
They will receive 80 percent of their free allowances after publishing a board-approved decarbonisation investment plan, with the remaining 20 percent released only after investments and emissions reductions have been delivered.
