ETC/ACM Technical Paper 2017/11

The EU Emission Trading System (EU ETS) was launched in 2005. The two first trading periods were 2005–2007 and 2008–2012. In 2013, the EU ETS entered its third trading period, covering approximately 12 000 stationary installations. The scope in the third period is larger than in the two previous trading periods: some of the installations today covered have not been participating earlier and some greenhouses gases of already participating installations have not been regulated earlier. An analysis of ETS emissions over time and across trading periods needs to account for those additional emissions.

This paper presents a methodology used by the EEA to complement the emissions data available from the European Union Transaction Log (EUTL) for the period 2005–2012 with additional emission estimates in order to reflect the current scope of the EU ETS (for the period 2013–2020). With such estimates, it is possible to build a consistent time series of emissions under the EU ETS for stationary installations. These estimates are calculated using complementary methods and data directly provided by Member States. In the end, the full data set provides a basis for assessing emission trends in the EU ETS as a whole and at the national level. The data set also allows for the calculation of consistent time series of national emissions in the sectors covered by Decision No 406/2009/EC, the Effort Sharing Decision (ESD).

Based on the methodology in the paper, verified emissions for the entire EU ETS are adjusted upwards. These adjustments represent 15 % of total emissions in 2005, then drops to 10 % in 2007 and finally 5 % in 2012.

The report was prepared on behalf of the European Environment Agency, as partner of the European Topic Centre on Air Pollution and Climate change Mitigation.