STORY
Six European Union member states are resisting a Commission plan to reduce the number of free carbon permits given to heavy industry by 2030. Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Greece, Poland, Romania and Slovakia are arguing that current energy prices and geopolitical instability are putting energy-intensive sectors under severe pressure.
The dispute is part of a wider argument over the future of the EU Emissions Trading System and the pace at which free allowances should be phased down. Supporters of the existing approach say the system is essential to drive decarbonisation, while the six countries say a rapid reduction in free permits could damage competitiveness and encourage production to move outside the EU.
EU industry ministers are expected to discuss the issue as the Commission prepares further rules and wider revisions linked to the bloc’s 2040 climate targets. The debate shows how difficult it remains to reconcile climate ambition with the economic position of member states whose industrial bases are more exposed to carbon costs.