Price is not right?
A TOP business body today questioned whether calls for a floor price for carbon credits in Europe’s Emissions Trading Scheme are the right response.
Westminster’s environmental audit committee has warned that the EU’s flagship scheme is failing to galvanise vital green investment following a recession-induced collapse in carbon prices. MPs want a minimum price of as much as 100 euro a tonne - up from 15 euro (£13) a tonne today.
Sarah Green, regional director of the CBI North-east, said: “It should be remembered that many low carbon technologies, such as renewables and clean coal, have their own support schemes, with a higher carbon price that encourages new technologies to be brought to market. The reason the carbon price is currently lower than expected is because the market believes the recession will make the EU’s targets easier to meet. The committee is right to raise the option of reducing the ETS cap but, in practice, this will depend on whether the EU decides to increase its 2020 targets which, in turn, will depend on international negotiations.”
The Emissions Trading System (ETS) forces companies to buy pollution permits while carbon output is capped every year.
See tomorrow’s nebusiness for a full report on our latest Big Issue debate: What next after Copenhagen?
