On 22 November, partner companies of the Magritte Initiative met at the seat of the European Parliament to defend a more ambitious reform of the carbon market. Our Group, represented by Gérard Mestrallet, was in Strasbourg for this day of discussions and debates.

The Magritte Initiative – Solutions to tackle Global Warming

Since it was established in May 2013, the Magritte Initiative has assessed the climate and energy situation in Europe. The CEOs of its ten partner companies aim to contribute to the debate by making constructive proposals and offering concrete solutions to revitalise Europe’s energy and climate policy.

> View the ‘Magritte Initiative – towards a new European energy policy’ conference, held on 15 April 2014

Today, the Magritte Initiative warmly welcomes the ratification of the Paris Agreement and its entry into force before COP22, demonstrating once again the EU’s leading role in the fight against climate change.

These long-term climate commitments (80-95% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions between 1990 and 2050) must now be converted into concrete measures to adapt the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) to the aims set out at COP21.

> What is the EU ETS?

Concrete Proposals to achieve Climate Targets

Although favourably received, the reform proposed by the European Commission will not be enough to comply with the ambitious European CO2 emission reduction targets and ensure a transition to low-carbon technologies. It is essential that the EU ETS functions effectively to ensure a profitable energy transition by sending the private sector strong and clear price signals to encourage investment in technologies with low or no carbon emissions.

Negotiations covering phase 4 (2021-2030) of the system are the perfect occasion to rebalance the European carbon market. This would involve:

• Consolidating the structure of the carbon market and restoring investors’ confidence by guaranteeing them visibility and predictability;
• Sending powerful price signals to the market by implementing a CO2 price increase that is sufficient to unleash the full potential that decarbonising the energy sector of the future brings.

European measures should be given priority over isolated national initiatives, which harm the EU ETS and inhibit fairness within the European Union.

Finally, this will also involve supplementing the proposals with provisions aimed at preventing carbon leakage to protect the competitiveness of European industries working in international business.

The energy transition and sustainable energy: a reality for Magritte Initiative companies