carbon border adjustment mechanism

As the cost of generating clean energy continues to fall, producing green hydrogen in Europe, rather than importing it from Africa – with all the transport costs and raised carbon footprint that would entail – is beginning to look like an increasingly viable option.

A lack of clear policy support, raw material dependency, and higher production costs are inhibiting the localization of European solar manufacturing, despite strong demand.

A flurry of clean energy announcements in the European Union this year bodes well for the expansion of renewables but there will be a race against time to get key legislation adopted before next summer’s European elections.

European commissioner for economy Paolo Gentiloni has outlined how the commission’s planned revision of the energy taxation regime, and introduction of an EU carbon border, could be applied.

Emissions permits are selling at around €50 per ton, completing a rally from last year’s Covid-driven slump faster than expected by business respondents to the 2021 Refinitiv Carbon Market Survey.

Carbon price levied on imported goods should be linked to level set by the bloc’s emissions trading system and should cover the power sector by 2023, according to members of the European Parliament’s environment committee.