Fiala: EU will comply with the initiative requesting a cap on the prices of new permits
Prague/Brussels – The European Commission will comply with the proposal of the Czech Republic and other countries and prepare a proposal to cap the prices of new emission permits for individual household heating and fuels, said Prime Minister Petr Fiala (ODS) to CNN Prima News today. Fiala described the decision as a great success, although the Czech goal is not to introduce these emission permits at all. However, a majority has not yet been achieved for this. Minister of the Environment Petr Hladík (KDU-ČSL), who is negotiating in Brussels today, confirmed that he received a direct promise from the European Commissioner for Climate Wopke Hoekstra. The Czech Republic expects a response from the Commission within days or weeks.
The new ETS 2 emission permit system is set to expand trading in permits to include road transport and building heating, among other things. It is planned to take effect from 2027 according to current plans. The Czech Republic is part of a group of nearly twenty countries that are requesting changes to it.
Fiala told CNN Prima News that according to current information, “the European Commission will comply with the request we made as a coalition of 19 countries.” No one will have to fear rising costs for fuels or housing, which some estimates had predicted. After Wednesday’s government meeting, Fiala told reporters that the Czech Republic is ready to seek support for further adjustments, postponements, and the abolition of this type of permit.
According to the Ministry of the Environment (MŽP), Commissioner for Climate Hoekstra stated that the EC, like the Czech Republic, clearly does not intend to accept excessively high prices and understands the concerns in the Czech Republic and other EU countries, the MŽP reported in a press release. The European Commission is now very carefully and thoroughly analyzing the proposals and recommendations from member states in a letter that Hladík sent to the European Commission on behalf of 19 countries at the beginning of July. According to the ministry, Hoekstra promised that the Commission would respond to the requests in a way that would alleviate concerns and implement the recommendations described in the letter initiated by the Czech Republic.
“The so-called non-paper is a successful initiative of the Czech Republic, which has gained the support of 18 other member states, representing 91 percent of the EU population. In the letter, the Czech Republic requested the Commission for fundamental changes and guarantees that trading in emission permits will be predictable, that permits will not sharply increase in price, and that they will not have a negative impact on citizens,” adds today’s press release from the MŽP. (September 18)
