FuelsEurope statement on the Energy Taxation Directive

We welcome the European Commission’s initiative for a recast of the Energy Taxation Directive (ETD) that should help to achieve the goals of the European Green Deal, as well as develop new markets for energy products which were not available yet when the ETD was adopted in 2003.

In this EU policy framework related to the 2030 GHG reduction target and the 2050 climate neutrality objective, the decarbonisation of transport – a sector with far-reaching implications and unique challenges - is a precious opportunity for the EU economy to:

• develop and deploy innovative low-carbon technologies in vehicles and fuels/energy.
• create economic value for the transport systems and to help the relevant EU industries achieve world-leadership.

We recommend adopting the proposal adopted by the European Commission on 14 July 2021 which aims to develop favourable taxation schemes adjusted to the environmental performance and GHG savings of the individual energy carriers. Those can provide consumers and businesses with the right price incentives to accelerate production of renewable and low-carbon fuels, including all sustainable gaseous and liquid fuels as defined by the Renewable Energy Directive (Directive (EU) 2018/2001) and complying with its sustainability criteria.