EU ministers to meet on carbon emission costs, causing alarm

The EU’s energy ministers plan to meet in Ljubljana Wednesday in search of a solution to counter the relentless rise in carbon emission right costs, which, for some time now, have reached elevated levels that hang as a dark cloud over energy consumers, hundreds of suppliers and Europe’s energy transition strategy, breeding increasing Euroscepticism.

Carbon emission rights have been stuck at levels of no less than 60 euros per ton, prompting allegations of manipulation.

Last week, the European Commission submitted to European Parliament the EU’s more ambitious climate-change package, “Fit for 55”, aiming for a 55 percent reduction of carbon emissions by 2030, compared to 1990 levels. It is planned to lead to ETS mechanism revisions.

In response to accumulating messages of alarm from energy consumers and industrial enterprises from all over the continent, European MPs, at Wednesday’s meeting, are expected to push for stricter ETS rules.

Until now, governments of EU member states have been left to act independently for support measures whose extent is being determined by the capabilities of state budgets.

In Italy, the government, facing electricity cost increases of 40 percent, is lowering taxes linked to electricity bills. In France, low-income households stand to receive increased energy-cost coupon amounts, currently worth 150 euros annually.

The situation is far more dramatic in the UK. To date, seven electricity suppliers, under growing market pressure, have disrupted their operations, forcing over 600,000 customers to seek new suppliers. Bulb, one of the UK’s biggest electricity suppliers, serving 1.7 million customers, is on the verge of bankruptcy. A merger with a rival player is seen as the likeliest solution for this company.