CEMBUREAU attends ECCP benchmarking meeting

On 6 November CEMBUREAU participated in the Ad hoc meeting of the European Climate Change Programme (ECCP) stakeholder group on emissions trading covering the issue of benchmarking. Key points raised during the meeting include the fact that the European Commission has signed several contracts with various consultants with the aim of moving ahead with the finalisation of the benchmarks, quality criteria for verification of benchmark curves and draft rules for activity data collection, setting up a helpdesk, limited data collection for validation of the benchmarks, support for the proportionate impact assessment, and an assessment of international negotiations.

In addition, a Technical Working Group and Task Force have been established with the Member States. In relation to the European Commission’s interservices consultation, bilateral meetings with sectors were due to be held the following week. A first Task force meeting was held on 17 November, followed by a TWGⁱ meeting being organised approximately every 6 weeks as of 30 November. Further stakeholder consultations are expected, but the dates have yet to be confirmed. The draft benchmark rules are expected by May 2010, with the Member States consultation occurring in June/July 2010. The Climate Change Committee is expected to vote on the draft in July or September 2010 followed by a three month scrutiny by the EP and the Council. The document will then be adopted by theEuropean Commission in December 2010.

DG ENV still assumes that no cross-sectoral correction factor will be needed. In relation to the discussion on the linear factor, DG Environment is currently consulting the Commission’s legal services. TNO also gave a presentation on their final report on the GHG efficiency of industrial activities in EU and non-EU countries. The report was heavily criticised and industry deplored the lack of consultation. IEA and GNRⁱ data are, as far as the cement industry is concerned, completely ignored. The report concludes that the cement industry is not at risk of carbon leakage by simply comparing specific emissions in different regions of the world. Industry also added that carbon leakage should rather be assessed in terms of difference in constraints. In addition, CO2 from transport should be taken into account from an efficiency perspective. Industry urged DG ENV not to publish the TNO report or at least to clearly highlight the caveats of the study. WWF, however, deplored the fact that the study was only released after the vote in the Parliament’s Environment Committee.

With regards to the ECOFYS report, CEMBUREAU welcomed the fact that clinker has been identified as the basis for the benchmark. The Association is nonetheless concerned about how to take biomass availability into account, and is also advocating a separate benchmark for white clinker.

The presentations from the meeting can be found here:

http://ec.europa.eu/environment/climat/emission/benchmarking_agenda.htm

A CEMBUREAU delegation was also invited to a bilateral meeting with DGs Environment and Enterprise to further discuss details related to the cement industry. CEMBUREAU committed to speed up the GNR data collection for 2008 in view of providing the European Commission with updated distribution curves for the purpose of setting the benchmark (Gross CO2 emissions per tonne of clinker).

The deadline set by the European Commission for sectors to register their interest in developing a product benchmark for transitional free allocation was 30 November 2009.