This book focuses on the EU ETS, the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme, backbone of the European Union strategy to combat climate change, and its industry competitiveness implications. In the light of the discussion of the revision for the coming years, it aims to provide a toolbox of key elements to understand its functioning and to reflect on crucial improvements. Specifically, besides a general overview of the first phases of the scheme and current difficulties, the book aims to (i) deploy an energy-intensive sector-level analysis, with both reference to academic literature (ex ante and ex post studies, paying a special attention to the underlying assumptions) and stakeholders positions on carbon leakage issue; (ii) present an overview of the existing ETS policy measures and worldwide experiences; (iii) reflect on the ongoing reform for the post-2020 period, starting from the European Commission's proposal and entering the technical and political debate taking place within the European institutions.
The EU ETS and the European industry competitiveness provides the reader with a full understanding of the system, presenting problems, policy options, design aspects and global insights. It aims to identify potential improvements and to draw lessons for the coming years and the future phases, assessing if the current reform is actually on track to adequately protect business competitiveness. About the author Chiara Spinelli holds a Master's degree cum laude in Environmental Polices from Universita Cattolica in Milan, where she previously obtained a Bachelor in International Relations and Development Cooperation. During her studies, she gained international professional and academic experiences collaborating with public bodies and attending several courses on climate and environmental issues. She is now based in Brussels where, after completing an internship focused on climate and competitiveness, she is working in public affairs on energy efficiency. Passionate about economic policy, she wrote her Master's thesis on the EU ETS and competitiveness: this book develops from that project.