Dear Sir or Madam,
Last Friday, 14 February 2025, the German Bundesrat (Federal Council) passed a comprehensive legislative package on energy and emissions trading. This package includes several important measures aimed at facilitating the expansion of renewable energies and achieving climate targets.
One of these was the direct marketing of solar power. The new rules stipulate that fewer plant operators will receive the state-guaranteed feed-in tariff. Instead, their income is now based on the prices on the energy exchange. When electricity prices are negative, the tariff is now suspended to create incentives for storing surplus electricity, which also benefits grid stability.
In the future, electric cars should also be able to charge bidirectionally, i.e. their batteries can be integrated into the power grid and used to store electricity.
Furthermore, the approval of wind turbines in areas that have not yet been designated for this purpose has been made more difficult in order to promote acceptance of the expansion of wind energy; the funding of combined heat and power plants has also been extended. Additional incentives are also being created for the flexible design of biogas plants in order to improve the consistency of electricity generation.
And in carbon emissions trading, the reform of the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading Act (TEHG), which had already been passed by the Bundestag on 31 January 2025, was approved. This was particularly concerned with new EU rules for the introduction of the EU ETS II trading system for the heating and transport sectors. Furthermore, maritime transport will be included in the existing emissions trading scheme and the rules for aviation will be tightened.
However, it is currently anything but certain whether the EU ETS II will really start on 1 January 2027. The Czech Republic, for example, is calling for a postponement until 2028, and Poland even until 2030.
Italy also fears that the energy-intensive industry will be overburdened. Germany, on the other hand, has proposed a gradual introduction, with 30% of emissions to be priced in the first year, 50% in the second year and 100% in the third year.
France and Sweden, on the other hand, have advocated a rapid implementation of EU ETS II.
In any case, it will remain exciting and now that the Bundesrat has given its approval, it can be assumed that the EEX auction calendar for this year’s primary market fixed-price auctions of Germanys national ETS will not be too long in coming.
Prices in the EU ETS I continued to be bearish last week and the EUAs benchmark contract ended the week below the 80 euro mark. In particular, weaker gas prices led to market participants then taking profits.
On Thursday, EUAs were still holding at the 38-day line, which is currently at 78.70, but by Friday this resistance had also become obsolete. Towards the end of trading, the price stabilised again and ended the trading week at 79.75, with a weekly loss of 3.1%.
(Average Quotes Exchange / OTC) | |||
Instrument | 07/02/25 | 14/02/25 | Change |
EUA (December-25-Future) | 82.28 EUR | 79.75 EUR | -2.53 EUR |
nEZ (national Emission Allowances (D)) | 55.00 EUR | 55.00 EUR | +0.00 EUR |
UKA (December-25-Future (UK)) | 46.97 GBP | 46.71 GBP | -0.26 GBP |
UK Natural Gas (December-25-Future) | 129.34 GBP | 125.03 GBP | -4.31 GBP |
ICE Brent Crude Oil (December-25-Future) | 71.51 USD | 71.87 USD | +0.36 USD |
EURO (Forex) | 1.0328 USD | 1.0492 USD | +0.0164 USD |
(EUA. UKA, Natural Gas, Crude Oil and Euro Currency shows day-end-exchange quotes. This market information has just an informational character and are no advice or offer to trade emission allowances or their futures and options. If you want to unsubscribe, please reply to this mail.)
Please call our international carbon desk if any further questions exist: +49.2831.1348220.
With kind regards,
Your Advantag – Team