Overall emissions of CO2 from businesses in the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) increased by 0.68% in 2007 when adjusted for changes in the number of installations covered, according to the information provided by Member State registries. While well below the 2.8% growth in the EU's Gross Domestic Product recorded last year, the slight increase in emissions underlines the need for the tighter emission caps that have been set for the 2008-2012 trading period.

European Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas said: "Emissions trading is yielding results. Studies show that emissions would most likely have been significantly higher without the EU ETS. However, the small rise last year further confirms the need for a strict emission cap for the second trading period that started this January. This will help Europe to fight climate change effectively and reach its Kyoto emission targets."

First trading period concluded, second under way

The first trading period of the EU ETS, which was a "learning-by-doing" phase, started with the scheme's launch on 1 January 2005 and ended on 31 December 2007. The second trading period began on 1 January 2008 and runs for five years until 2012, coinciding with the period during which the EU Member States and other developed countries must meet their Kyoto Protocol targets for limiting or reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

Reporting requirements

Under the rules governing the EU ETS, installations are required to submit their verified emissions data to Member State registries, which in turn forward it to the Community Independent Transaction Log (CITL). For 2007, this data became publicly available on the CITL on 2 April 2008. From 15 May onwards the CITL also shows information on whether installations complied with their obligation to surrender an amount of allowances equal to last year's verified emissions.

2007 data

According to the information received by the CITL from national registries, the total amount of verified emissions from EU ETS installations in the EU-25 (excluding Malta) in 2007 was 2.050 billion tonnes of CO2, 0.8% higher than the 2.034 billion tonnes recorded in 2006. However, when adjusted for the entry and closure of installations since 2006, which led to a net addition of 581 installations to the system, the overall emissions increase last year was only 0.68%. Of the 11,186 installations participating in the scheme last year, 68 failed to surrender enough allowances to cover their 2007 emissions by the 1 May 2008 deadline. These installations are typically small and collectively account for less than 0.08% of allowances allocated. The Commission will provide public reports on the compliance situation at installation level in each Member State in June.