How the EU can support carbon pricing at global level

Abstract

The EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) – by far the world’s largest carbon market – has been an effective means of reducing emissions in the EU. As of 2027 the EU ETS will include emissions from road transport and heating and is expected to cover 75% of the EU’s emissions. The EU has also decided on a new Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) which imposes a carbon price on imports, thereby de facto externalising the EU ETS price to goods produced elsewhere in the world. The EU now needs to deploy much more effort to promote carbon pricing in a global context based on the considerable policy learning that the EU ETS represents.