Taraba: ETS 2 Concessions Insufficient for Slovakia

Brussels/Bratislava, 16 December (TASR-correspondent) – Slovakia does not consider the concessions on the ETS 2 emissions trading scheme to be sufficient, Environment Minister Tomas Taraba declared on Tuesday in Brussels after the meeting of the EU Environment Council, a special TASR correspondent reported on the same day. The EU emissions trading system, which is to be extended to building heating and road transport (ETS 2) as of 2027, was the most important item on the agenda of the ministers' meeting, Taraba said. He pointed out that although the European Commission has indicated a postponement of the entry into force of ETS 2, Slovakia does not regard these concessions as adequate. "We do not believe that the declared effort to release larger volumes of emission allowances onto the market will ensure any stabilisation of prices in the future. Our position, as well as that of Hungary, the Czech Republic and other countries, is that we have declared an intention to withdraw from ETS 2," Taraba said. The minister added that other states, including Poland, argue that the mechanism proposed by the Commission is questionable in terms of whether it will sufficiently ensure price stabilisation. He also stressed that the environmental benefit of ETS 2 is "negligible". "We consider it an extremely antisocial element that only makes people's lives and housing more expensive. It will also create pressure on prices of goods, because everything transported by road will essentially be exposed to some price shock that no one can even estimate today," he said. Taraba expressed the view that claims that the EU has found a model to cap prices after the introduction of ETS 2 are unfounded. In the event of a vote at the EU Council, Taraba was to represent the new Czech environment minister Petr Macinka. In the end, no vote took place, but Taraba said that after the formation of the new Czech government, the Czech Republic and Slovakia form a "strong tandem" in the EU Council, as both countries share, among other things, the potential vulnerability of their industries. He added that a bilateral meeting of the Czech and Slovak delegations took place ahead of the ministers' meeting. In this context, Taraba noted that he is among the "extreme sceptics" of the Green Deal and believes the new Czech government is sending the same signal. "We are now closest, because the Green Deal is destroying European industry, and that should concern us in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, because we are the most industrialised states per capita," he explained. mf