Summary
The Cefic position paper discusses the integration of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions regulations within the EU’s Industrial Emission Directive (IED). It argues that the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) already effectively reduces GHG emissions in industry, and overlapping regulations via the IED would be counterproductive. The IED’s aim has not been GHG reduction, particularly since many industrial plants under IED also fall under EU ETS, which supersedes IED requirements. Cefic contends that GHG regulations should remain within the EU ETS framework to avoid inconsistency, inefficiency, and economic disadvantages for EU producers.
Concrete Takeaways
- Regulating GHGs under the IED would be inefficient and redundant, as the EU ETS already addresses these emissions effectively through a dynamic, cost-effective approach.
- Overlapping GHG regulations could create competitiveness issues for EU producers and potentially lead to carbon leakage, where emissions occur outside the EU.
- The IED’s static regulation conflicts with the flexible, market-driven mechanisms of the EU ETS, potentially resulting in ineffective and economically detrimental outcomes.