Aviation emissions
Aviation is a highly energy-intensive sector. For example, a person flying from Lisbon to New York and back generates roughly the same level of emissions as an average EU citizen does by heating their home for a whole year.
In 2022, aviation contributed 2% to the global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, experiencing a faster growth rate in recent decades compared to rail, road, or shipping. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), with the rebound of international travel post-COVID-19, aviation emissions for 2022 reached almost 800 Mt of CO2. This is approximately 80% of pre-pandemic emission levels.
The International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) forecasted that by 2050 international aviation emissions could triple compared to 2015. In 2022, direct emissions from aviation accounted for 3.8% to 4% of total EU GHG emissions. Aviation generates 13.9% of transport emissions, making it the second biggest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the transport sector, after road transport.
To address this trend, various technical and operational measures - such as the use of sustainable aviation fuels, improvements in airframes and engines, operational optimisations, a modal shift to less emission-intensive modes, including rail, and reducing the need for transport (e.g., through videoconferencing) - are essential to mitigate the growth of emissions, ultimately reducing them in the coming decade and contributing to the EU’s overall climate neutrality target.
In addition to CO2, aircraft engines release various other gases such as nitrous oxides (NOx), sulphur dioxide (SO2), water vapour, and particulate matter - including sulphate and soot. When these emissions occur at high altitudes, they impact the physical and chemical properties of the atmosphere. This contributes to the greenhouse effect, the main driver of climate change. These gases can lead to the creation of persistent contrail cirrus clouds, which also contribute to global warming by retaining the Earth’s heat.
As confirmed by a report from the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), the non-CO2 effects of aviation activities accounted for more than half (66%) of the sector’s net climate forcing in 2018.
EU action
All sectors, including aviation, need to contribute to achieving the EU’s ambitious climate targets. This is why, since 2012, the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) has been covering the aviation sector in Europe.
In 2019, the EU launched the European Green Deal: our plan for Europe to become climate-neutral by 2050. To achieve that goal, we need to reduce transport emissions by 90% by mid-century (compared to 1990 levels).
Aviation in the EU Emissions Trading System
Under the EU ETS, all airlines operating in Europe, European and non-European alike, are required to monitor, report and verify their emissions, and to surrender allowances against those emissions. They receive tradeable allowances covering a certain level of emissions from their flights each year.
Under the EU ETS “cap and trade” system, aviation contributed to reducing the carbon footprint of other sectors by around 160 million tonnes during the third trading period (2013-2020), according to the 2022 European Aviation Environmental Report. The compliance rate in the aviation sector is high, as over 99.5% of emissions are usually covered by surrender of allowances.
The original legislation, adopted in 2008, was designed to apply to emissions from flights from, to and within the European Economic Area (EEA) – the EU Member States, plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. The European Court of Justice has confirmed that this approach is compatible with international law. The EU, however, decided to temporarily limit the scope of the EU ETS to flights within the EEA, to support the development of a global measure by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). This measure is known as Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA).
In light of the launch of CORSIA, this limitation has been extended several times. During the latest revision, it was extended one last time, until the start of 2027. By July 2026, the Commission will carry out an assessment of whether more action is required for flights to and from Europe, in line with criteria set in the EU ETS Directive. Subject to the outcome of this assessment, the Commission will make a legislative proposal that could extend the scope of EU emissions trading to departing flights and exempt incoming flights. Alternatively, the proposal could be to maintain the intra-European scope if CORSIA is strengthened and has a high level of global participation and implementation.
The EU also strives to reduce emissions from aviation via the Linking Agreement with Switzerland. The principles governing aviation activities in the Swiss ETS align with those of the EU ETS. Following the entry into force of the Linking Agreement, a Commission Delegated Decision exempted flights arriving from Switzerland from the EU ETS, reflecting the scope of aviation activities covered by the Linking Agreement. A Commission Decision ensured the corresponding changes of the free allocation to aviation operators. Moreover, under the 'one-stop shop' approach, aircraft operators are administered by either an EEA state or Switzerland for both emission trading systems. This means that a single authority takes responsibility for the implementation of the two systems so that operators will only have to interact with one authority under the linked systems.
Emissions from flights to the United Kingdom are covered by the EU ETS, as provided for by the Trade and Cooperation Agreement with the UK. Flights arriving from the UK were exempted in a Commission Delegated Regulation, similarly to flights arriving from Switzerland, as they are covered by the UK-ETS. Free allocation to aviation operators was also adjusted accordingly in a Commission Decision.
Revision of the EU ETS Directive concerning aviation
In July 2021, the European Commission adopted a series of legislative proposals setting out how it intends to achieve economy-wide climate neutrality in the EU by 2050. This includes an intermediate GHG emissions reduction target of at least 55% by 2030, compared to 1990 levels.
The revision of the EU ETS in aviation aims to ensure that the aviation industry contributes to the EU's climate objectives. This includes increasing the auctioning of allowances by phasing out free allowances and applying the strengthened linear reduction factor to aviation. Additionally, the revision appropriately implements ICAO's CORSIA through the EU ETS Directive. This will be applied to international flights departing from or arriving at airports within the European Economic Area (EEA). For flights within the EEA, only the EU ETS will continue to apply. The revision introduces the following changes:
Full auctioning from 2026
Free allocation to aircraft operators will be reduced by 25% in 2024 and by 50% 2025, moving to full auctioning for the sector by 2026. The free allocation for 2024 and 2025 will be distributed among aircraft operators proportionately to their 2023 verified emissions.
ETS-financed support for uplifting eligible alternative aviation fuels
20 million ETS allowances (EUR 1.6 bn at an allowance price of EUR 80) have been reserved to cover some, or all, of the price gap between conventional fossil fuels and eligible alternative aviation fuels uplifted from January 2024.
Levels of support can go up to 100% of the price difference for eligible fuel uplifted at small islands, small airports, and outermost regions. For uplift at other airports, renewable fuels of non-biological origin will receive a level of support of 95%, while it will be 70% for advanced biofuels and 50% for other fuels of non-fossil origin included in the scope of ReFuelEU Aviation. Only fuels used on flights covered by ETS compliance obligation will be supported. More information of the ETS-Financed support can be found in this presentation.
Monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) of non-CO2 effects
The Commission is establishing an MRV system for non-CO2 aviation effects to apply from 1st January 2025, calculating CO2 equivalent per flight through state-of-art approaches using flight information, aircraft and fuel properties, performance information and weather data. By the end of 2027, the Commission will deliver a report on the results and if appropriate, will make a legislative proposal to address non-CO2 effects of aviation.
Innovation Fund
5 million ETS allowances will be added to the Innovation Fund, which airlines and airports have always been eligible to access for support. The Innovation Fund can explicitly support the electrification of aviation, decarbonise the sector and mitigate its non-CO2 effects.
Transparency
The Commission will publish extended data on annual emissions from aviation activities. The first dataset was published for the 2022 reporting period.
The restriction of the geographical scope of the ETS is extended until the start of 2027
In 2026, the Commission will carry out an assessment of CORSIA to determine if it is sufficiently delivering on the goals of the Paris Agreement. The assessment will evaluate whether CORSIA has been strengthened and its level of coverage of international aviation emissions. Subject to the outcome of this assessment, the Commission will make a legislative proposal. This proposal could extend the scope of the EU ETS to include departing flights and exempt incoming flights, if CORSIA is not strengthened to be aligned with the Paris Agreement or the participation of third countries in it is insufficient.
Appropriate implementation of CORSIA through the EU ETS Directive
The Directive maintains the current EU ETS scope and applies CORSIA to extra-European flights only, as stronger action is being taken for intra-European flights. The basic premise of the Directive is that the same conditions must apply on the same routes. The eligibility of credits to be used for CORSIA offsets is subject to the participation of issuing countries in the Paris Agreement and in CORSIA, as well as a prohibition of double counting. These rules were adopted on 10 May 2023 and entered into force on 5 June 2023. You will find the legal text below:
Global scheme to offset emissions
The European Union has consistently emphasised its strong preference for a multilateral action to tackle emissions from aviation. In October 2016, ICAO agreed on a Resolution for a global market-based measure to address CO2 emissions from international aviation as of 2021. As a result, the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) was introduced.
CORSIA aims to stabilise CO2 emissions at 2020 levels by requiring airlines to offset the growth of their emissions above these levels. Under CORSIA, aeroplane operators are required to:
- Monitor, report and verify emissions on all international routes;
- Offset the growth above the baseline in emissions from routes subject to offsetting in the scheme by purchasing eligible emission units generated by projects that reduce emissions in other sectors.
CORSIA is being implemented in three phases:
- Pilot phase (2021-2023) - offsetting requirements are only applicable to flights between States that have volunteered to participate in CORSIA offsetting (115 States has volunteered to participate in 2023).
- First phase (2024-2026) - offsetting requirements will still be applicable only on routes between volunteering States.
- Second phase (2027-2035) - CORSIA should apply to all ICAO contracting states, with certain exemptions.
EEA countries have implemented the scheme for airlines based in the EEA, through the EU ETS Directive. A regular review of the scheme is required under the terms of the agreement. This should allow for continuous improvement, including in how the scheme contributes to the goals of the Paris Agreement.
The CORSIA baseline of 2020 emissions was meant to be established as an average of reported emissions from 2019 and 2020. However, following the significant reduction of aviation activities due to the COVID-19 crisis, the baseline for the pilot phase was re-defined as the level of 2019 emissions. This, combined with the rebound of the aviation sector, resulted in no offsetting obligations under CORSIA for aeroplane operators in 2021 and 2022. The ICAO recovery scenarios show that this is expected to be the case for 2023 as well. After the first periodic review of CORSIA, ICAO countries agreed on a new CORSIA baseline from 2024 onward, defined as 85% of CO2 emissions in 2019.
The 2023 revision of the EU ETS aviation rules extended the restriction of the EU ETS geographical scope until the start of 2027. After this date, departing flights from the EEA to states not implementing ICAO’s CORSIA scheme would be included in EU ETS. This is an incentive for third countries to apply the CORSIA scheme.
In October 2022, during the 41st ICAO Assembly, ICAO Member States adopted a collective long-term global aspirational goal (LTAG) of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. The achievement of the LTAG will depend on the cumulative impact of numerous CO2 emissions reduction strategies, such as the rapid adoption of innovative aircraft technologies, simplified flight procedures, and greater production and use of sustainable aviation fuels.
- 2024/07/01 – Public feedback on the monitoring and reporting rules
- 2024/06/21 - A system for airlines to monitor, report and verify non-CO2 effects of aviation: A step-by-step guide for airlines
- 2020/11/23 - COM (2020) 747 - Updated analysis of the non-CO2 climate impacts of aviation and potential policy measures pursuant to the EU Emissions Trading System Directive Article 30(4)
- 2020/11/23 - SWD (2020) 277 - Full-length report accompanying the study
- 29/12/2017 - Regulation (EU) 2017/2392 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 December 2017 amending Directive 2003/87/EC to continue current limitations of scope for aviation activities and to prepare to implement a global market-based measure from 2021
- 03/02/2017 - COM (2017) 54 - Proposal for a Regulation amending Directive 2003/87/EC to continue current limitations of scope for aviation activities and to prepare to implement a global market-based measure from 2021
- 03/02/2017 - SWD (2017) 30 - Executive summary of the Impact Assessment
- 03/02/2017 - SWD (2017) 31 - Impact Assessment
- 16/12/2020 - Commission Decision of 16 December 2020 on instructing the central administrator to enter the national aviation allocation tables of Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland and Sweden into the European Union Transaction Log
- 05/11/2020 - Decision No 2/2020 of the Joint Committee established by the Agreement between the European Union and the Swiss Confederation on the linking of their greenhouse gas emission trading systems of 5 November 2020 on on amending Annexes I and II to the Agreement and the adoption of Linking Technical Standards (LTS)
- 01/01/2020 - Consolidated version of the Linking Agreement between the European Union and Switzerland
- 01/01/2020 - Notice concerning the entry into force of the Agreement between the European Union and the Swiss Confederation on the linking of their greenhouse gas emissions trading systems
- 05/12/2019 - Decision No 2/2019 of the Joint Committee established by the Agreement between the European Union and the Swiss Confederation on the linking of their greenhouse gas emission trading systems
- 07/12/2017 - Agreement between the European Union and the Swiss Confederation on the linking of their greenhouse gas emissions trading systems
- 25/06/2020 - Council Decision (EU) 2020/954 - Position to be taken on behalf of the European Union within the International Civil Aviation Organisation as regards the notification of voluntary participation in the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) from 1 January 2021 and the option selected for calculating aeroplane operators’ offsetting requirements during the 2021-2023 period (COM/2020/194 final - Proposal for a Council decision on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union in the International Civil Aviation Organisation, in respect of notification of voluntary participation in the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) from 1 January 2021 and of the option selected for calculating the aeroplane operators’ offsetting requirements during the 2021-2023 period)
- 29/11/2018 - Council Decision (EU) 2018/2027 - (EU Member States’ notification of differences to the ICAO Secretariat) Position to be taken on behalf of the European Union within the International Civil Aviation Organisation in respect of the First Edition of the International Standards and Recommended Practices on Environmental Protection — Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA)
- 10/2016 - 2016 ICAO Assembly Resolution
- 30/10/2013 - 2013 ICAO Assembly Resolution
- 12/01/2012 - Statement of reservation to the ICAO Council decision
- 10-11/2010 - Reservations to the 2010 ICAO Assembly Resolution on Climate Change
- 07/10/2010 - 2010 ICAO Assembly Resolution on Climate Change
- 02/10/2007 - Statement of reservation on behalf of the member states of the European Community (EC) and the other states members of the European Civil Aviation (ECAC) [made at the 36th Assembly of ICAO, 18-28 September 2007]
- 19/03/2015 - Frequently Asked Questions. Free allocation from the Special Reserve
- 16/04/2014 - Regulation (EU) No 421/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2003/87/EC establishing a scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Community, in view of the implementation by 2020 of an international agreement applying a single global market-based measure to international aviation emissions
- 16/10/2013 - COM (2013) 722 - Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2003/87/EC establishing a scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Community, in view of the implementation by 2020 of an international agreement applying a single global market-based measure to international aviation emissions.
- COM (2013) 722 Annex - Coverage percentages
- SWD (2013) 430 - Impact Assessment
- SWD (2013) 431 - Executive summary of the impact assessment
- 16247/13 - Additional Analysis of Impact Assessment
- MEMO/13/906 – Commission proposes applying EU ETS to European regional airspace from 1 January 2014
- 28/10/2013 - FAQ: Commission proposal for a European Regional Airspace Approach for EU emissions trading for aviation
- 23/10/2013 - Provisional list of countries to/from which it is proposed that routes be exempted from EU ETS for the period from 2014 to 2020
- 04/10/2013 - Communication from the Commission - Guidance on the implementation of Decision No 377/2013/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council derogating temporarily from Directive 2003/87/EC establishing a scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Community
- 24/04/2013 - Decision No 377/2013/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council derogating temporarily from Directive 2003/87/EC establishing a scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Community
- 16/04/2013 - Flights that benefit from the derogation ("exempted flights")
- 18/04/2013 - Step by step instructions
- 20/11/2012 - COM (2012) 697 - Proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and Council derogating temporarily from Directive 2003/87/EC establishing a scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Community
- 19/11/2008 - Directive 2008/101/EC - Amending Directive 2003/87/EC so as to include aviation activities in the scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Community
- 13/10/2003 - Directive 2003/87/EC - Establishing a scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Community and amending Council Directive 96/61/EC
- 27/03/2024 - EEA-wide list of aircraft operators
- 20/07/2011 - EEA JC Decision 93/2011 - has incorporated the Commission Decision on the Union–wide quantity of allowances for aviation into the EEA agreement and has established EEA-wide quantities of allowances for aviation
- 01/07/2011 - EEA JC Decision 87/2011 - has incorporated the Commission Decision on Union-wide historical aviation emissions into the EEA agreement and has established an EEA-wide figure for historical aviation emissions
- 20/04/2011 - Reglement 394/2011: List of aircraft operators further to the expansion of the Union emission trading scheme to EEA-EFTA countries
- 07/03/2011 - Commission Decision 2011/149/EU - Historical aviation emissions pursuant to Article 3c(4) of Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing a scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Community
- 08/06/2009 - Commission Decision 2009/450/EC - Detailed interpretation of the aviation activities listed in the Annex I to Directive 2003/87/EC
- 16/04/2009 - Commission Decision 2009/339/EC - Inclusion of monitoring and reporting guidelines for emissions and tonne-kilometre data from aviation activities
- 19/09/2008 - COM/2008/0548 - Communication on the European Parliament's amendments to the Council's Common Position
- 08/07/2008 - 2006/0304(COD) - Resolution of the European Parliament on the Council common position on the Commission's proposal
- 22/04/2008 - COM/2008/221 - Communication of the European Commission on the Council's common position
- 18/04/2008 - 2006/0304(COD) - Common Position of the Council on the proposal
- 20/12/2007 - Political agreement reached by the Environment Ministers on the Council's first reading position on the Commission's proposal
- 13/11/2007 - First reading position of the European Parliament on the Commission's proposal
- 10/10/2007 - Opinion of the Committee of the Regions stating it agrees with the Commission that aviation should be included in the ETS
- 08/06/2007 - Council Conclusions on the position to be taken by EU Member States at the ICAO Assembly in September 2007 in relation to the inclusion of aviation in the EU Emissions Trading System
- 31/05/2007 - Opinion of the European Economic and Social Committee welcoming the Commission's proposal as a "carefully considered and pragmatic approach" to address emissions from aviation
- 20/12/2006 - Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2003/87/EC so as to include aviation activities in the scheme for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Community
- 04/07/2006 - Resolution of the European Parliament in response to the Commission's Communication
- 04/2006 - Opinion of the European Economic and Social Commitee on the Commission's Communication
- 16/12/2005 - European Council conclusions
- 12/2005 - Supportive conclusions of the Environment Council
- 27/09/2005 - Communication of the European Commission outlining plans to reduce the impact of aviation on climate change
- 04/2006 - Final report of the Aviation working group bringing together experts from Member States and industry, consumer and environmental organisations
- 2005-2006 - Background documents and minutes from working group meetings
- 02/12/2015 - Study: Possible legal arrangements to implement a global market based measure for international aviation emissions
- 25/03/2014 - ETS Aviation small emitters: Cost assessment of applying EU ETS on aviation small emitters and analysis of improvement potential by simplifications, alternative thresholds and alternative means of regulation (Summary)
- 20/12/2006 - Summary Impact Assessment
- 20/12/2006 - Full impact assessment
- 27/09/2005 - Preliminary impact assessment
- 07/2005 - Study on the possibility of including aviation in the EU Emissions Trading System
- 2005 - Report on the public consultation on Reducing the Climate Change Impact of Aviation from 11 March until 6 May 2005
- 21/12/2011 - Documents related to the ATA case against the EU ETS
FAQs
Questions & Answers
Questions and Answers on the inclusion of non-CO2 aviation emissions in the Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) framework
In its 1999 special report on aviation, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change looked at the sector’s full impacts on climate, including the effect of emissions other than CO2. The significance of these non-CO2 aviation emissions and climate effects include impacts from persistent contrails and other factors (NOx, SO2, soot particles) that contribute to global warming. These effects are significant because they have a considerable net contribution to global warming. In particular, the IPCC has estimated that the total climate impact of aviation is currently two to four times higher than the effect of its past carbon dioxide emissions alone.
By addressing its non-CO2 effects, the aviation sector can demonstrate leadership and commitment to climate neutrality, aligning with Europe’s climate targets, as set out in our recent Communication on a 2040 recommended climate target [LINK].
The 2023 revision of the EU Emissions Trading System Directive concluded that non-CO2 aviation effects can no longer be ignored. I The monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) system is therefore being implemented to address these effects. The revised Directive provides that the monitoring and reporting by airlines should take place from January 2025. To put this requirement into effect, the Commission has prepared an Implementing Act under the ETS Monitoring and Reporting Regulation to include non-CO2 aviation emissions in the overall MRV framework. The next steps following the approval today (29 August 2024) by the Member States are the formal adoption of the MRV rules by the Commission and their publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.
The science on non-CO2 impacts is progressing thanks to numerous research projects, and the MRV would contribute to this.
Establishing the non-CO2 MRV will offer precious data for scientific research, enhancing our understanding and ensuring openness to contributions from the scientific community.
Despite inherent uncertainties in the science around non-CO2 aviation effects, the net contribution to global warming is well known. Studies have shown that the uncertainty in these effects is not a sufficient reason to avoid action.
The precautionary principle supports taking measures against these effects to mitigate their impact on climate. As the MRV is a first of its kind, it is designed to be a tool that will evolve as the science progresses.
Examples of research projects: Teoh, R., et al, 2023, Global aviation contrail climate effects from 2019 to 2021, EGUsphere [preprint]; Joe Yue-Hei Ng et al, 2024, Contrail Detection on GOES-16 ABI With the OpenContrails Dataset; R Sausen et al, 2023, Can we successfully avoid persistent contrails by small altitude adjustments of flights in the real world?, Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt (DLR), Institut für Physik der Atmosphäre, Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany, and EUROCONTROL Maastricht Upper Area Control MUAC Maastricht, The Netherlands; Contrail Mitigation: A Milestone Year for Advancing Industry Understanding and Experience - RMI.
Airline operators would start monitoring the non-CO2 aviation effects from 1 January 2025, and reporting once a year. The monitoring and reporting of non-CO2 aviation emissions and their possible impact would cover all flight activities involving an airport located in the European Economic Area, in a phased approach.
From January 2025, monitoring and reporting would be required for all routes involving two aerodromes located in the EEA, and routes from an aerodrome located in the EEA departing to Switzerland or to the United Kingdom.
For flights to non-EEA airports, the Implementing Act foresees a time limited deferral of two years for the mandatory monitoring and reporting requirement. Voluntarily reporting on these flights would however be possible during this time.
After this period, from January 2027, the monitoring and reporting requirement will be mandatory for all inbound and outbound flights to the EEA. The reason for this phased approach is to facilitate the smooth launch of the new MRV system for all stakeholders, gradually increasing transparency on the emissions and possible climate impact of the sector and ensuring that the MRV is an effective and reliable tool to increase transparency.
The two guiding principles of the MRV system are flexibility and data precision. These principles ensure a balanced approach that minimises administrative effort while enhancing understanding of non-CO2 effects.
- Flexibility:
- The system will use available data provided by third-party sources and/or estimates where relevant, rather than requiring data measured in-flight.
- The entire MRV process will be automatised thanks to an IT tool. Other than the fuel properties (such as aromatic content), only aircraft properties (aircraft type, engine identifier and aircraft mass) are to be provided by the aircraft operators.
- Where no data is provided, default values will be used, so that the MRV system can remain fully automatic.
- The IT tool has different modules allowing aircraft operators to select the data they require: For instance, operators can either use the module that displays NOx, particulate emission volumesor the module that translates these emissions into CO2 equivalent. Carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) is a unit of measurement that is used to standardise the various climate effects. It expresses the impact of different greenhouse gases or climate effects using the equivalent amount of CO2.
- The system will assess Global Warming Potential (GWP) metric over multiple time horizons (20, 50, and 100 years). This avoids addressing impacts only from one temporal perspective and so eliminates technology lock-in effects for the sector.
- The system accommodates small emitters with a simplified climatological location-based model approach.
- Data precision:
The MRV includes climate models like CoCiP and aCCF to calculate the CO2e for non-CO2 effects under the weather-based approach that is the default approach for the MRV. For small emitters, an open-source version of AirClim is used for calculations based on a simplified climatological location-based model. These climate models have been extensively tested and are internationally recognised and peer- reviewed. If all the necessary data for the use of the weather-based approach is not available for certain flights, a simplified climatological approach can be used. In addition, fuel burn and emissions will be calculated using the Base of Aircraft Data (BADA) and Boeing Fuel Flow method modules. For more, see A Step-By-Step Guide For Airlines.
The MRV system reduces administrative burden by using available third-party data, estimating data where necessary, and employing a customizable IT tool (currently being developed by the Commission) to automate the MRV process.
In line with its principles of flexibility and data precision, aircraft operators can also choose to implement their own models and data. These alternatives must first be approved by the Commission services, and their technical specifications, workflows, and monitoring procedures must be detailed in the monitoring plan before use.
Weather forecasts or hindcasts generated by numerical weather prediction models map the background atmospheric conditions that influence the persistence of contrails, which are a key component of non-CO2 effects. The weather forecast will be based on data provided by national weather authorities, ensuring a high level of transparency, and avoiding administrative burden for airlines.
The Commission promotes a comprehensive approach to innovation as it is important to achieving the European Green Deal objectives and for the competitiveness of European industry. EU research and innovation activities on the impact of non-CO2 aviation effects and the development of technological solutions to reduce them have been ongoing since 1994.
The updated Innovation Fund, financed by revenues generated from the EU Emissions Trading System, will support the aviation sector's efforts to address their climate impact, including actions to reduce its non-CO2 effects. Its new methodology considers non-CO2 effects and welcomes projects related to mitigating these effects, highlighting the sector's potential to address the full aviation climate impact.
Moreover, a recent Horizon Europe call, open from December 2023 to April 2024, focused on projects aiming to minimising the non-CO2 effects of aviation, enhance scientific understanding of aerosols and NOx emissions, assess policy measures, analyse cost-climate trade-offs and conduct flight tests.
Historic aviation emissions and the inclusion of aviation in the EU's Emission Trading System (EU ETS)
Historic aviation emissions are the basis for calculating the cap on aviation emissions applied when the sector is included in the EU ETS from January 2012. Today's decision by the European Commission publishes the mean average of the annual emissions for the years 2004, 2005 and 2006 of all flights that would be covered by the EU ETS performed by air carriers to and from European airports. Based on this average annual historical aviation emissions for the period 2004-2006, the number of aviation allowances to be created in 2012 amounts to 212,892,052 tonnes (97% of historic aviation emissions), and the number of aviation allowances to be created each year from 2013 onwards amounts to 208,502,525 tonnes (95% of historic aviation emissions).
The Commission has been assisted by Eurocontrol – the European organisation for the safety of air navigation. The comprehensive air traffic data contained in Eurocontrol's databases from the Central Route Charges Office (CRCO) and the Central Flow Management Unit (CFMU) were considered the best available data for calculation of the historic emissions. These provide among other things a calculation of the actual route length for each individual flight. Emissions were then calculated on a flight-by-flight basis using the ANCAT 3 (Abatement of Nuisances Caused by Air Transport) methodology and the CASE (Calculation of Emissions by Selective Equivalence) methodology.
In addition to Eurocontrol's data, the Commission also used information on actual fuel consumption from almost 30 aircraft operators of different types and sizes. This data was for aircraft types that were responsible for 93% of emissions in the base years.
Thirdly, additional calculations were carried out to account for fuel consumption associated with the use of the auxiliary power units (APUs). APUs are small engines that are used to provide lighting and air conditioning when the aircraft is stationary at airports. They are used when the aircraft is not connected to ground source electrical power and ventilation services. The approach taken was first to determine the average APU fuel consumption for different aircraft types. The individual emission factors of APU fuel consumption were then extrapolated to calculate total APU emissions applying a process which took into account the actual share of fuel burn for the flights under the EU ETS of each aircraft type and the use of ground power in airports. The emissions corresponding to the resulting total APU fuel consumption were included in the historical aviation emissions for each of the years 2004, 2005 and 2006.
The 2004-06 baseline period is defined in the legislation on the inclusion of aviation in the EU ETS. The baseline period for aviation allocation under the EU ETS is different from the 1990 baseline for the EU's overall reduction commitment as it takes into account the significant growth in aviation over the last 15 years.
This decision has been adopted later than originally foreseen in order to spend more time collating data on the historic emissions. Additional studies were done to increase the accuracy of the estimations of historic aviation emissions, in particular in relation to the fuel used by auxiliary power units (APU). Together with the support from Eurocontrol and contribution from aviation sector, a methodology to assess the APU was developed and the fuel consultation by APU was estimated. This figure was then added to the flight based CO2 emissions.
The subsequent steps foreseen in the implementation of the Directive are to determine free allocations to aircraft operators and the volume of allowances to be auctioned.
82% of the allowances will be given for free to aircraft operators and 15% of the CO2 allowances are allocated by auctioning. The remaining 3% will be allocated to a special reserve for later distribution to fast growing airlines and new entrants into the market.
The free allowances will be allocated by a benchmarking process which measures the activity of each operator in 2010 in terms of the number of passengers and freight that they carry and the total distance travelled. The benchmark should be published by 30 September 2011.
Member states have agreed that all revenues from auctioning should be used to tackle climate change including in the transport sector.
The events from the Icelandic volcano in 2010 will have no effect whatsoever on the total size of the emissions cap for aviation under the EU ETS or the total number of allowances that will be allocated free of charge to aircraft operators.
We have not seen data to suggest that the impact of the ash cloud will have a material impact on the distribution of free allowances between aircraft operators. Redistribution might occur if certain airlines had to cancel a greater proportion of flights then others, while the vast majority of operators have been impacted by the flight restrictions resulting from the volcanic ash cloud. Indeed all the estimations that we have seen confirm that distributional impacts are very small.
For the regulator to change or adapt the 2010 benchmarking year for the allocation of free allowances to aircraft operators, it would require a change in primary EU legislation. Adopting such legislation usually takes 2 years and there are no plans to start this process.
The EU ETS will cover any aircraft operator, whether EU- or foreign-based, operating international flights on routes to, from or between EU airports. All airlines will thus be treated equally. Very light aircraft will not be covered. Military, police, customs and rescue flights, flights on state and government business, and training or testing flights will also be exempted.
To reduce administrative costs, each operator will be administered by a single Member State regarding emissions from the total of its flights to, from and within the EU.
The list of aircraft operators that may be covered by the system includes over 4000 operators. The list has been created with the support of Eurocontrol and was based on actual flight information; it was last updated in February 2011 to take account of all changes that happened in 2010.
The EU is the strongest advocate for global action to reduce climate impacts of aviation. States have not been able to agree on a common global system through either the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) or the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). In the Resolution on climate change adopted at its most recent Assembly in October 2010, states in ICAO called for further work to explore the feasibility of a global market-based measure. The Resolution also recognized that states may take action prior to 2020. The EU ETS provides a good model for applying market-based measures to aviation. Development of other national programmes covering international aviation, compatible with the EU ETS, are a pragmatic way in which global action can be implemented.
While a number of airlines support action by the EU to address the climate change impacts from aviation, a challenge to the EU Directive has been launched by a number of US airlines. This has been referred to the European Court of Justice, and the European Commission, European Parliament, Council and a number of Member States have submitted observations, in addition to other organisations intervening in the case. The airlines involved are complying with the Directive's requirements in full pending the resolution of this challenge.
The environmental impact of including aviation in the EU ETS will be significant because aviation emissions, which are currently growing rapidly, will be capped at below their average level in 2004-2006. By 2020 it is estimated that a total of 183 million tonnes of CO2 will be saved per year on the flights covered, a 46% reduction compared with business as usual. This is equivalent, for instance, to twice Austria's annual greenhouse gas emissions from all sources. Some of these reductions are likely to be made by airlines themselves. However, participation in the EU system will also give them other options: buying additional allowances on the market – i.e. paying other participants to reduce their emissions - or investing in emission-saving projects carried out under the Kyoto Protocol's flexible mechanisms. Providing aviation with these options does not reduce the environmental impact of the proposal since the climate impact of emission reductions is the same regardless of where they are made.
Including aviation in the EU ETS will not directly affect or regulate air transport tickets. However, aircraft operators may have to invest in more efficient planes or buy emission allowances in the market in addition to those allocated to them. The impact on ticket prices will probably be minor. Assuming airlines fully pass on these extra costs to customers, by 2020 the ticket price for a return flight within the EU could rise by between €1.8 and €9. Due to their higher environmental impact, long-haul trips could increase by somewhat more depending on the journey length. For example a return flight to New York at current carbon prices of around €15 might cost an additional €12. However, ticket price increases are in any case expected to be significantly lower than the extra costs airlines have passed on to consumers due to world oil price rises in recent years. Including aviation in the EU ETS will also have a smaller impact on prices than if the same environmental improvement were to be achieved through other measures such as a fuel tax or an emissions charge.
Direct emissions from aviation account for about 3% of the EU’s total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The large majority of these emissions comes from international flights, i.e. flights between two Member States or between a Member State and a non-EU country. This figure does not include indirect warming effects, such as those from NOx emissions, contrails and cirrus cloud effects. The overall impact is therefore estimated to be higher. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has estimated that aviation’s total impact is about 2 to 4 times higher than the effect of its past CO2 emissions alone. Recent EU research results indicate that this ratio may be somewhat smaller (around 2 times). None of these estimates take into account the uncertain but potentially very significant effects of cirrus clouds.
EU emissions from international aviation are increasing fast – doubling since 1990 – as air travel becomes cheaper without its environmental costs being addressed. For example, someone flying from London to New York and back generates roughly the same level of emissions as the average person in the EU does by heating their home for a whole year. Emissions are forecast to continue growing for the foreseeable future.
Emissions from aviation are higher than from certain entire sectors covered by the EU ETS, for example refineries and steel production. When aviation joins the EU ETS it is forecast to be the second largest sector in terms of emissions, second only to electricity generation.
Airlines have been monitoring their emissions during 2010, and are required to verify and report these emissions to their administering Member States by 31 March 2011. By that same date, airlines may also apply for free allocations of emissions allowances on the basis of their activities in 2010. Based on information submitted by the Member States, the European Commission will calculate the benchmark that will define how many free allowances aircraft operators will receive. This benchmark decision will be published by 30 September 2011.
By end September the Commission will also publish the emissions cap and the percentages of allowances to be: auctioned; given for free; and allocated to the special reserve.
Under a wet lease arrangement an aircraft is operated by the lessee for the benefit of the lessor who essentially remains responsible for the state and maintenance of the aircraft i.e. the lessor retains effective control of the flight. The presumption, therefore, is that the lessor is the aircraft operator and that the flight plan will contain the ICAO designator of the lessor/owner or the registration marking of the aircraft. However, the lessor and lessee may agree and indicate alternative responsibility for the flight activity by, for example, using the ICAO designator of the lessee in the flight plan.
The definition in Article 3(o) of the EU ETS Directive determines who is an "aircraft operator" for the purposes of the EU ETS. This definition refers to a natural or legal person which operates an aircraft at the time it performs an aviation activity specified in Annex I to the EU ETS Directive (i.e. a flight departure or a flight arrival at an aerodrome in the territory of the EU). If the identity of the operator cannot be ascertained then the aircraft owner is deemed to be the operator unless the owner identifies the relevant operator.
Under a "dry lease agreement" an aircraft is operated by the lessee under the AOC of the lessees and control of the aircraft effectively passes to the lessee. The presumption, therefore, is that the lessee is the operator and the ICAO designator of the lessee should appear in the flight plan.
The legal requirements of the EU ETS apply when an aircraft operator first performs an aviation activity in Annex I of the EU ETS Directive which is not covered by any of the exemptions in that Annex. The specific obligations which an operator needs to fulfil are explained in FAQs 3.1and 3.2 below.
Some aircraft operators employ the services of management companies to file flight plans and pay route charges on their behalf. Some management companies also provide services related to the ETS obligations of their clients. However, management companies are notaircraft operators for the purposes of the EU ETS Directive unless they also operate flights covered by Annex I of the EU ETS Directive.
An aircraft operator that does not perform any flight activity in Annex I of the EU ETS Directive for a complete calendar Year X is not required to comply with EU ETS requirements for that calendar year. However, verified emissions reports and the surrender of allowances will be required in Year X in respect of any relevant flight activity performed in the calendar year X-1.
It is entirely possible for a service company to be empowered to represent an aircraft operator before the competent authorities of the administrating Member State in relation to EU ETS matters. The extent of the powers of the service company will depend upon what is agreed between the operator and the service company.
It is possible, therefore, for a management company to file monitoring reports, and applications for free allowances on behalf of a particular aircraft operator if the management company is duly empowered. The issue of allowances can only be made directly to a registry account held by the aircraft operator. However, the Registries Regulation permits an aircraft operator to nominate an "additional authorised representative" who has limited rights on the account (the exact scope of these limited rights can be set by the account holder). Naturally, administering Member States will wish to be certain about the identity of the aircraft operator represented by a management company.
The Commission also has a duty to ensure the efficient operation of the EU ETS and so it will continue to identify and to include in the list of aircraft operators it publishes those operators who may nonetheless be represented by service companies for the matters relating to the EU ETS.
Annex XV of the Monitoring Decision states in Part 2 that for the purpose of identifying the aircraft operator defined by Article 3(o) of the EU ETS Directive, the ICAO designator in box 7 of a flight plan is to be used or, in the absence of such a designator, the aircraft registration marking is to be used. It appears that there is no uniform system, criteria or procedure for the application and issue of ICAO designator codes. So that it is unclear whether all operators will have a designator or whether aircraft operators within the same corporate group will share the same designator or have separate and distinct ICAO designators. Further complications may arise in identifying an aircraft operator due to the various types of aircraft leasing, the use of management companies, or the use of multiple ICAO designators by the same aircraft operator. Where the aircraft operator cannot be identified then the legislation stipulates that the owner will be responsible unless the owner can identify the relevant operator. Naturally, complications will not arise if each operator possesses and uses its own distinct ICAO designator.
There are several categories of flight which are exempt from the EU ETS. These are contained in Annex I of the EU ETS Directive and include activities such as search & rescue, state flights transporting third countries' Heads of State, Head of Government and Government ministers, police flights amongst others. There are special codes to designate these types of flight which should be inserted into the flight plan which is filed by the operator in order that the flight can be correctly excluded. More information about the types of flight excluded and the associated codes to be inserted in the flight plan can be found in the Annex I Decision1.
The relevant test in the EU ETS Directive for an aircraft operator is simply that there is a legal person responsible for flights arriving or departing from EU aerodromes which are not covered by the exemptions in Annex I of the EU ETS Directive. Individual companies that have been duly incorporated each possess their own distinct legal personality. It follows, therefore, that each company responsible for flights covered by Annex I is a different aircraft operator for the purposes of the EU ETS Directive even if they are in the same corporate group of companies.
In addition, Article 18(a) of the EU ETS Directive identifies an administering Member State, in relation to a particular commercial aircraft operator, by reference to the mandatory operating licence issued to that operator by the Member State concerned. There is a presumption, therefore, that each legal person issued with an operating licence by a Member State should be treated as a distinct and separateaircraft operator.
There is a de minimis exemption in subparagraph (j) of Annex I to the EU ETS Directive below which an entity ceases to be an aircraft operator covered by the provisions of the EU ETS. This exemption only applies to commercial air transport operators. Flights may also be provided by commercial operators without remuneration but this factor is not relevant when determining whether the de minimis threshold is exceeded.
In summary, all flights of a commercial operator which are not covered by any of the other exemptions in Annex I of the EU ETS Directive must be considered when assessing whether the de minimis threshold is exceeded.
There is no explicit requirement for an aircraft operator to have a uniqueidentifier. Recital 15 of the Aviation Directive states that an aircraft operator may be identified by the use of an ICAO designator or any other recognised designator used in the identification of a flight and that if the identity of the operator is not known, then the owner of the aircraft should be deemed to be the operator unless proven otherwise. The crucial point for the operation of the EU emissions trading scheme is that the activities of a given aircraft operator can be attributed unequivocally to that operator. As such, and given the absence in Community law any requirement to be identified by a single and unique identifier, it follows that there is no legal obstacle for an aircraft operator to be identified by multiple ICAO designators so long as these are associated with a single aircraft operator. Obviously, it is administratively simpler if an operator uses only a single identifier when filing its flight plans.
The primary function of the list of aircraft operators published by the Commission is to facilitate the good administration of the EU ETS by providing information on which Member State will be regulating a particular operator. This prevents double regulation.
It must be emphasised that inclusion on the list of aircraft operators published by the Commission is not determinative as to whether a natural or legal person is an aircraft operator. This is clearly spelled out in Part 1 paragraph (3) of the Annex to the Annex I Decision. Moreover, a separate information note has been published on the Europa web site on the role of the list whose primary function is to facilitate the good administration of the EU ETS by informing regulators and aircraft operators about who is regulating whom. Conversely, aircraft operators that are on the list do not fall under the EU ETS if they only perform aviation activities that are exempt under Annex I to Directive 2003/87/EC.
It is possible that the list published by the Commission contains inaccuracies or does not reflect the most up to date information about aircraft operators' activities. The Commission will update the list from time to time and where appropriate bring inaccuracies to the attention of competent authorities. Member States are not bound only to regulate those entities contained in the list published by the Commission but have some flexibility to regulate "off-list", for example, where a Member State issues an operating licence to a new operator.
The Commission intends to publish an updated list each year around the beginning of February on the basis of the best available information. The aim of this update is to include new aircraft operators that have undertaken flight activities covered by Annex I of the EU ETS Directive in the previous calendar year. In addition, this represents an opportunity to correct manifest errors in the designation of operators or administering Member States.
It is not so important to remove operators that cease their activities given that obligations arise under the ETS from performing relevant flight activities in Annex I of the EU ETS Directive rather than from inclusion on the list. However, to keep the list manageable administratively, where operators have clearly ceased to be covered by the ETS and will not return to it because, for example, they are no longer in existence or because they have rescinded their operating licence, then the Commission will remove such operators from the list at the time of its update. It should be remembered that the activities of some operators may be such that in one year they are not covered by the ETS but activity levels may increase so that in subsequent years they are covered. It does not make sense to amend the list in such circumstances.
Airspace users using services companies for flight planning and payment of route charges may not necessarily be included in the list.
Whilst an aircraft operator is defined by Article 3(o) of the EU ETS Directive, in practice the call sign used for Air Traffic Control (ATC) purposes has been used. The call sign appears in field 7 of the flight plan. The call sign either starts with the 3-letter ICAO designator of the operator or, if not available, represents the registration marking of the aircraft. In the latter case, the aircraft operator is identified by the operator indicated in field 18 of the flight plan or the operator identified by EUROCONTROL’s Central Route Charges Office (CRCO) with alternate sources of information (such as States’ registries or States’ administrations).
An airspace user may not appear as a distinct aircraft operator in the current list if all of its flights have been (a) operated under the ICAO designator of a service company; or (b) identified by the aircraft registration marking and the service company has indicated to the CRCO that it is responsible for the payment of route charges. In such cases, all the flights of the airspace user have been attributed to the service company.
If an aircraft operator has a 3-letter ICAO designator, the aircraft operator should ensure that this code is used in its flight plans or that box 18 of the flight plan indicates its ICAO designator as the operator of that flight. Alternatively, the operator can place the registration marking of the aircraft in field 18 of the flight plan and submit to EUROCONTROL an annual declaration, including information on the composition of their fleet.
The aircraft operator responsible for a flight has been identified on the basis of the information inserted in field 7 of the flight plan. Consequently, flights of subsidiaries operated under the ICAO 3-letter designator of the parent company will have been allocated to the parent company. Also, subsidiaries operating flights under their own ICAO 3-letter designator may also have been allocated to the parent company when the parent company took responsibility of the flights for air navigation charges purposes.
If the parent company has been identified as the aircraft operator for all the flights of a subsidiary, the latter will not appear as a distinct aircraft operator in the current list as there are no flights attributed to it. Aircraft operators which are subsidiary companies should ensure that they identify their flights using a separate ICAO designator and/or that they include all aircraft under their company in the fleet declaration submitted to EUROCONTROL’s Central Route Charges Office (CRCO).
Two conditions need to be fulfilled in order for an aircraft operator to benefit from the de minimis exemption under subparagraph (j) of Annex I to the EU ETS Directive:
- the operator is a commercial air transport operator; AND
- the aircraft operator operated less than 243 flights per consecutive period of four months (Jan-Apr, May-Aug, Sep-Dec) or emitted less than 10,000 tonnes of CO2 annually.
If these conditions are met, the most probable reason for inclusion in the list is that for its present functions EUROCONTROL does not retain comprehensive records about AOCs for all operators flying in the EU region. As a result, EUROCONTROL may not be aware of the commercial status of particular operators (as defined in Article 3 of the EU ETS Directive). When this AOC information is missing, the operator is deemed not to be a commercial air transport operator.
An operator may also be included in the list because the last condition above is not satisfied. This means that according to the air traffic information held by EUROCONTROL and the CO2 emissions estimations produced by EUROCONTROL, in any of the years since 2006 both of the following conditions were fulfilled:
- in one of these years, the annual CO2 emissions were estimated to be above 10,000 tonnes and
- in at least one of the four month periods Jan-Apr, May-Aug, or Sep-Dec of the same year you operated at least 243 flights;
If your AOC contains information confirming that you are a commercial air transport operator, please provide a copy of it to EUROCONTROL. Please also keep your competent authority informed that you have sent your AOC to EUROCONTROL.
For non EU operators it may not be possible in all cases to determine your commercial status from your national certificate that is equivalent to the AOC (e.g. US Air Carrier Certificates). This is due to differences in the types of information that is contained in these certificates. However, you are still welcome to submit a copy of your certificate to EUROCONTROL, who may contact you for additional supporting documents.
The maximum take-off mass that has been used to determine whether flights should be exempted under subparagraph (h) of Annex I to the EU ETS Directive was that held by EUROCONTROL for the calculation of route charges. If you consider that all the flights you have operated were flown only with aircraft of less than 5.7 tonnes, please discuss this issue with your competent authority. The Commission is not in a position to decide whether an operator is exempt from the EU ETS. You may also wish to contact EUROCONTROL for further information.
If you are on the list it means that you have been identified as the aircraft operator of at least one flight since 2006 that was not considered exempted according to Annex I of the EU ETS Directive.
This situation could be the case for ferrying flights operated, for instance, during the delivery of the aircraft or for bringing it to or back from maintenance facilities. Such ferrying and positioning flights are not exempt from EU ETS. If you consider that all the flights you have operated are exempted under either of the subparagraphs of Annex I of the EU ETS Directive, please discuss this with your competent authority. The Commission is not in a position to decide whether an operator is exempt from the EU ETS. You may wish to contact EUROCONTROL for further information.
If you are on the list it means that you have been identified as the aircraft operator of at least one flight since 2006 that was flown to, from, or within the EU and that was not considered exempted according to Annex I of the EU ETS Directive.
This can be the case for ferrying flights operated, for instance, during the delivery of the aircraft or when bringing it to or back from maintenance facilities. If you consider that you have never operated any flight to, from or within the EU, or you do not plan to have any flights in the future, please discuss this with your competent authority. You may also wish to contact EUROCONTROL for further information.
The name of the operator is the name used by EUROCONTROL’s Central Route Charges Office (CRCO) when establishing the invoices for route charges. If you wish to correct the name of the operator on the list, please notify EUROCONTROL about the name change, providing sufficient evidence as to the correct name of the aircraft operator.
The list has been defined on the air traffic information since 2006. An operator has been included in the list as long as it had operated at least one eligible flight in those years.
EUROCONTROL can determine when the most recent flight was flown by a given operator but does not hold comprehensive information on whether such operator is still in operation. If you consider that an operator should NOT be on the list because it does not exist any longer or because it has ceased or suspended its aviation actives in the EU, please inform the competent authority about this. Please also notify the European Commission by sending a message to:
ENV-EU-ETS-AIRCRAFT-OPERATOR-LIST
ec [dot] europa [dot] eu (ENV-EU-ETS-AIRCRAFT-OPERATOR-LIST[at]ec[dot]europa[dot]eu)
You may wish to contact EUROCONTROL for further information (e.g. the date of the most recent flight in the EU).
The EU ETS Directive stipulates the administering Member State for any given operator in receipt of an operating licence in the EU is the Member State that issued the operating licence. Unfortunately, a complete and comprehensive database of all the operating licences granted by Member States in accordance with the provisions of Council Regulation (EC) No. 1008/2008 is not available, nor does EUROCONTROL hold this information. There is no definitive way, therefore, for the Commission or EUROCONTROL to check which Member State has issued AOCs and operating licences to particular operators and so there may be discrepancies in the list.
If you possess an operating licence from an EU Member State, but in the list you are allocated to a different Member State, please provide a copy of your operating licence to EUROCONTROL.
The administering Member State has been determined on the basis of the information available for the operator’s base year as defined by Article 18a(5) of the EU ETS Directive. The fact that an operator no longer operates or does not fly mainly from (or to) aerodromes located in such a State does not change the designation of the administering Member State.
Different companies operating flights covered by Annex I of the EU ETS Directive are considered as separate aircraft operators (see question 1.5). Administering Member States are attributed either on the basis of which Member State issued the operating licence or the State with the greatest attributed emissions for that operator. It is for the parent company to decide how to organise its corporate structure and flight activities in relation to the administration of the EU ETS and the allocation of administering Member States.
Article 18a(1) of the EU ETS Directive sets the rules on the initial attribution of an aircraft operator to an administering Member State. Attribution is done on the basis of which Member State has issued the operating licence or which is the Member State with the greatest attributed emissions from flights performed by that operator in the base year (2006).
However reattribution of an operator to a new Member State may be necessary if it turns out that the initial attribution does not meet the conditions set under Art 18a(1) of the EU ETS Directive.
Reattribution may be necessary where:
- the Commission together with EUROCONTROL changes the methodology used for the generation of the list of aircraft operators in order to improve the list's accuracy and better reflect the requirements of the Directive (such reattribution will not occur frequently after the initial set up of the scheme);
- there is an error in the list as a result of incomplete or inaccurate information held by the Commission or EUROCONTROL;
- the scope of the EU ETS is expanded to other countries, for instance the full integration of the EEA-EFTA countries (Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway) into the EU ETS.
Reattribution is different from the transfer of aircraft operators based on Article 18a(2) of the EU ETS Directive. Such transfer occurs where in the first two years of any trading period, none of the attributed aviation emissions from flights performed by an aircraft operator without an operating licence granted by a Member State are attributed to its administering Member State. That aircraft operator must be transferred to another administering Member State in respect of the next period. The new administering Member State will be the Member State with the greatest estimated attributed aviation emissions from flights performed by that aircraft operator during the first two years of the previous period.
After an aircraft operator is reattributed on the basis of Article 18a(1) or transferred on the basis of Article 18a(2) of the EU ETS Directive to a new administering Member State, the monitoring plan will have to be transferred from one administering Member State to another, or resubmitted by an operator to the new administering MS. This process has to be agreed between the Member States on a case by case basis, taking account of the views of the aircraft operator affected and seeking to minimize the financial costs and administrative burden to aircraft operator.
The timing of the transfer or resubmission of the monitoring plan should also be agreed between the Member States and the operator.
The list now contains a unique identification number (code) for each aircraft operator. This code will be used for compliance purposes. The code coincides with the number used by EUROCONTROL’s Central Route Charges Office (CRCO) for identifying airspace users in the route charges system. This identification number is shown in the reference of air navigation charges bills.
In the list, a number of aircraft operators may be indentified only by their ICAO designator or the registration mark of the plane. The majority of such aircraft operators are associated with flights operated entirely outside of the region for which EUROCONTROL provides the Central Route Charges Office function, such as flights from the French overseas territories to the Americas. In these cases EUROCONTROL does not have full information about the identity of the operator at this stage. In future versions of the list, the intention is to replace these notations with a complete company name.
For new entrants the EU ETS requirements will start from the moment an operator performs an aviation activity laid down in Annex I of the EU ETS Directive i.e. it departs or arrives at an aerodrome in the EU. The Administering Member State responsible for all aspects of administering the ETS in respect of the operator is the Member State that issued the operating licence. The following steps will need to be followed by the new aircraft operator and administering Member State for an activity which commences in Year X:
- Operators will have to submit a monitoring plan to the administering Member State as soon as possible.
- The administering Member State should approve the monitoring plan and the operator should monitor its emissions according the methods in the monitoring plan, the Monitoring Decision and relevant aspects of the Member States national rules and procedures.
- The operator should draft an emissions report for the calendar year X and have it verified by a verifier at the beginning of year X+1.
- The operator submits the verified emissions report to the administering Member State by 31 March of year X+1.
The operator must surrender sufficient emissions allowances to cover its emissions in calendar year X.
The same basic procedure in 3.1 above should be followed. However, the administering Member State is determined according to the greatest attributed emissions in the first year of operation which may not be immediately clear and may not be established definitively until the operator is included in a revised list published by the Commission. As such, the operator cannot submit a monitoring plan for approval to its administering Member State.
In such circumstances, the operator is required to determine its emissions with retrospective effect for the time it falls under the scope of EU ETS. For the period when it has not been attributed to an administering Member State, the operator can determine its emissions according to the approach in section 5 of Annex XIV of the Monitoring Decision to fill "data gaps". This allows an operator to determine its emissions which are missing for reasons beyond its control by a simplified method.
Where the administering Member State is clear from the nature of the operator's flight activity, operators can submit monitoring plans on an informal basis to the administering Member State before formal inclusion on a revised list of operators published the Commission.
An operator could apply to its administering Member State by 31 March 2011 for free allowances and provide verified tonne-kilometre activity reports to support the application. Before forwarding the applications to the Commission by 30 June 2011, the Member State should assess the admissibility of the reports and check for potential irregularities. This could be complemented by inspections of the monitoring activities of the operator during the monitoring year as well as supervision of verifiers. Nonetheless, the Member States should also be able to rely upon the verification process to establish the reliability and correctness of the activity data submitted by the operator.
Article 3f of the EU ETS Directive permits new operators who commence flight activity after 2010 or operators who experience a growth in tonne-kilometre activity in excess of 18% on average annually between 2010 and 2014 to apply for free allowances from the "special reserve". Any application must be made by 30 June 2015 and be supported by verified tonne-kilometre activity data and documentary proof that the operator meets the either of the two eligibility criteria. Before forwarding the application to the Commission (within 6 months) the administering Member State should assess compliance with the eligibility criteria using the material provided by the operator in support of the application as required by Article 3f(3) of the EU ETS Directive. The Commission may provide further guidance on how to perform this assessment at a later date.
Article 3f(1) states that allowances in the special reserve will not be allocated in respect of the flight activities of a new operator or the sharply increased growth of an existing operator if this new activity or increase in activity is a continuation of the activity (either in part or in whole) of another aircraft operator.
The above provision is designed to prevent the free allocation of allowances for flight activities that have already been the subject of a free allowance allocation albeit to a different operator. As such the competent authorities in the administering Member States will need information to establish that:
- There has been no acquisition by share sale of another aircraft operator or acquisition of business assets from another operator;
- There has been no internal corporate reorganisation or creation of a subsidiary company that involves the transfer of flight activity within the corporate group;
- There has been no restructuring as a consequence of an insolvency, scheme of arrangement or bankruptcy resulting in the creation of a new operator performing flight activity previously undertaken by another operator or the transfer of significant flight activity to an existing operator;
- There has been no outsourcing or leasing arrangements whereby existing flight activity of an operator in receipt of free allowances is transferred to a third party who becomes the effective operator of the flights.
A small emitter is a non-commercial air transport operator (i) whose flights in aggregate emit less than 25 000 tonnes of CO2 per annum; or (ii) which operates fewer than 243 flights per period for 3 consecutive 4-month periods. A small emitter can take advantage of a simplified procedure to monitor its emissions of CO2 from its flight activity. This procedure is described in Section 4 of Annex XIV of the Monitoring Decision and involves the use of a calculation tool developed by EUROCONTROL or similar tool developed by other organisations.
Aircraft operators emitting less than 25 000 tonnes of CO2 per year, both commercial and non-commercial, can choose an alternative to verification by an independent verifier. The alternative involves determining their emissions by using the small emitters tool approved under Commission Regulation No 606/2010. In such cases, data used for determining emissions must originate from Eurocontrol. As a result, aircraft operators taking advantage of this simpler method need to use data from the ETS Support Facility, without any modification, Of the two types of small emitters defined by Article 54 of Regulation No 601/2012, this simplification only applies to aircraft operators operating flights with total annual emissions lower than 25 000 tonnes CO2 per year. It should be noted that the exemption threshold of 25 000 tonnes CO2 per year is based on the full scope of the EU ETS as defined in Annex I to the EU ETS Directive.
Article 16 of the EU ETS Directive establishes a limited harmonisation of the financial penalties that will be paid by operators that fail to surrender the necessary number of emissions allowances (i.e. €100 per tonne of CO2). More generally, the co-legislators decided that the Member States should adopt rules on penalties for breaches of national legislation which transpose the Directive's requirements and that these penalties should be "effective, proportionate and dissuasive". This formulation allows the Member States to choose between criminal or administrative penalties and provides flexibility to implement a system of penalties that best fits with their national legal systems whilst respecting the obligation to treat breaches of Community law in a manner that is similar to a breach of a wholly national rule or law. The degree of harmonization decided by the co-legislators is arguably sufficient whilst at the same time respecting the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality by which action is to be taken only in so far as it cannot be sufficiently taken by the Member States alone and does not exceed what is absolutely necessary to achieve the desired objective.
Further harmonisation of administrative penalties could be envisaged under the EU ETS Directive but that would have to be decided by the co-legislators following a proposal from the Commission. There is also scope for establishing certain common criminal offences and penalties under the new Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union but again this will require a proposal from the Commission or a quarter of the Member States.
The Council has put into a place a framework for the mutual recognition of financial penalties in the form of Framework Decision 2005/214/JHA. This means that financial penalties due to offencesarising from breaches of instruments adopted to comply with Community law that are committed in one Member State (the issuing State) can be recognised and enforced in another Member State (the executing State). A central authority is responsible in each Member State for the administration of the scheme. Monies obtained from the enforcement go the executing Member State unless there is a contrary agreement between the two Member States concerned.
The Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA), which entered into force in 1994, is an agreement between the 27 EU Member States and three of the Member States of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). The latter states, which are Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway, are collectively called the 'EEA-EFTA countries'. The EEA Agreement provides for the extension of selected EU legislation to the EEA-EFTA countries.
The EEA-EFTA countries have been part of the EU ETS since October 2007, when the EU ETS Directive was incorporated into the EEA Agreement. The aviation part of the EU ETS was incorporated into the EEA Agreement by EEA Joint Committee Decision 6/2011.
The extension of the scheme entails that in addition to the 27 EU Member States the EU ETS covers also the 3 EEA-EFTA countries (Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway). As a result, flights which depart from or arrive in an aerodrome situated in the territory of an EEA-EFTA country, collectively called 'EEA additional flights', are subject to EU ETS rules. More precisely, EEA additional flights are:
- Domestic flights within the EEA-EFTA countries;
- Flights between the EEA-EFTA countries;
- Flights between the EEA-EFTA countries and third countries outside the EEA.
The list of exemptions from the scope of the EU ETS in Annex I of the EU ETS Directive also applies for the EEA additional flights.
Equal treatment of aircraft operators is a fundamental element of the EU ETS for aviation. The EU and the EEA-EFTA countries therefore have ensured that the design of the scheme is not altered by the extension to the EEA-EFTA countries. In particular, the same benchmark and harmonized allocation rules are applied for the EEA additional flights as for other flights covered by the scheme.
Aircraft operators which are already covered by the EU ETS are only be affected by the extension of the system if they perform EEA additional flights (see answer to question 8.2). These operators have to include their EEA additional flights into their monitoring and reporting activities.
These operators should have already updated their monitoring plans to cover their EEA additional flights.
Operators who update their monitoring plans should notify their competent authority without delay of any changes made. In case of substantial changes to the monitoring methodology, the operators need to submit their updated plans for re-approval. Substantial changes are described in the EU ETS monitoring and reporting guidelines and include:
- Change of the average reported annual emissions which causes the operator to exceed the threshold for applying tier 1 uncertainty for the determination of fuel consumption;
- Change in the number of flights or in the total annual emissions which cause the aircraft operator to exceed the threshold for small emitters, so that the operator is no longer eligible to benefit from the simplified monitoring procedures;
- Substantial changes to the type of fuels used.
If a commercial aircraft operator is exempted from the scope on grounds of point (j) of Annex I of the EU ETS Directive, (i.e. because it operates either fewer than 243 flights per period for three consecutive four-month periods or flights with total annual emissions lower than 10 000 tonnes per year (de minimisrule)), the exemption could cease to apply if EEA additional flights cause the aircraft operator to exceed the aforementioned limits. Those aircraft operator should submit monitoring plans as soon as possible to the competent authority in its administering state.
12/02/2019 - EEA-wide list of aircraft operators
The criteria set under Article 18a (1) of Directive 2003/87/EC to determine aircraft operator's administering Member State must take into account the extension of the aviation part of the EU emission trading scheme to EEA-EFTA countries (Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway). Thus, certain aircraft operators, previously allocated to one of EU 27 Member States, are allocated to the EEA-EFTA countries for administration. Regulation (EC) No 748/2009 has therefore been amended.
To facilitate a smooth changeover of the affected aircraft operators, the former administering Member State should complete all its obligations related to the aviation activities carried out during the calendar year before the reattribution of an aircraft operator to an EEA-EFTA country took place. The new administering State (Norway or Iceland) will take over the obligations related to the calendar year in which the reattribution took place and for the following calendar years.
The aircraft operator will need to deal with two authorities for the changeover period, as it completes it obligations in relation to aviation activities carried out in the previous year to the former administering Member State and progressively develops its relations with the newly attributed authority.
The key steps are as follows:
- Monitoring year 2011:
The EEA-wide list of aircraft operators reallocates some aircraft operators to Norway and Iceland. Each affected aircraft operator should submit without delay to the new administering State the monitoring plan for annual emissions, the approval of the monitoring plan by the previous administering Member State and the verified emissions report for the year 2010. This should enable the new administering State to administer the aircraft operator relating to its aviation activities performed during the year 2011. - Calculating the benchmarks and the auctioning share:
The former administering Member State should submit to the Commission by 30th June 2011 the data from the emissions report for the year 2010 and the verified 2010 report for tonne-kilometre data (the applications for free allowances for the periods 2012 and 2013-2020). - Allocation of allowances:
If applicable, each concerned aircraft operator should submit to the new administering State the approved monitoring plan for tonne-kilometre data and the verified report for tonne-kilometre data, accepted by the former administering Member State.
If the former administering Member State has modified the data before submitting to the Commission, it should inform the new administering State about the modifications made.
The new administering State should:
- calculate and publish the allocation of allowances for each aircraft operator whose application was submitted to the Commission; and
- issue by 28 February 2012 and by 28 February of each subsequent year the number of allowances allocated to the respective aircraft operator for that year.
The change of administrative responsibility, from a EU 27 Member State to Iceland or Norway, of those aircraft operators which are marked with an asterisk in the EEA list of operators may be subject to a specific timeline. This is to be agreed in conformity with Decision of the EEA Joint Committee n° 6/2011 of 1st April 2011 amending Annex XX (Environment) to the EEA Agreement, (published at the OJ L 93 7.04.2011 page 35).
Those aircraft operators, attributed to Iceland and Norway under the EEA list, which are marked with an asterisk, can request to remain under the administration of its former administering Member State until 2020 the latest, as provided in the Decision of the EEA Joint Committee No 6/2011 of 1st April 2011 amending Annex XX (Environment) to the EEA Agreement.
Such a request can be made by an affected aircraft operator to its former administering Member State within six months from the adoption by the Commission of the EEA-wide list of aircraft operators. The Member State concerned may agree to administer that operator for another year or longer, but only until the end of the trading period in 2020. The EEA-wide list was adopted on 20th April 2011, thus the requests can be made until 20th October 2011.
If the former administering Member State agrees to continue administering the aircraft operator concerned, it should inform the Commission about this agreement and indicate the date from which the aircraft operator will be administered by the new administering State.
Data from the EEA-EFTA countries will be taken into account when calculating the EEA historical aviation emissions The EU 27 historical aviation emissions will thus increase to reflect the extended scope of the EU ETS. Likewise, the total amount of allowances to be allocated free of charge, the total amount of allowances to be auctioned and the size of the special reserve will increase proportionally.
The following note was added on the Commission's website on aviation:
'Please note that all references to Member States on the templates should be interpreted as including all 30 EEA States. The EEA comprises the 27 EU Member States, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.'
In addition to this, references to the EEA-EFTA countries have been added to the list of Member States in several places in the templates:
- Where the aircraft operator indicates administering Member States;
- Where the aircraft operator indicates the state that has accredited the verifier;
- In the domestic flights emissions table under 9 (c) in the annual emissions report;
- As state of departure and state of arrival in tables 9 (d) and 9 (e) in the annual emissions report.
All commercial aircraft operators registered in Iceland and Norway have been informed about the extension. Information has been sent to the EU Member States administering other operators who are known to be affected by the extension, including a standard letter that can be used to inform these operators. In addition the EEA-EFTA countries, the EFTA Secretariat and the European Commission hosted an information meeting with European and international aviation associations on 11 December 2009 to inform them of the changes.
For further information about the extension, inquiries can be sent to the Environment Agency of Iceland (flugust [dot] is (flug[at]ust[dot]is)) or the Norwegian Pollution Control Authority (ETSaviationsft [dot] no (ETSaviation[at]sft[dot]no)).
In advance of biofuels becoming more commonly used in aviation, the following approach proposes a solution to monitoring and reporting biofuel used in relation to an EU ETS aviation activity. This approach is based on the understanding that it is currently technically not feasible or within reasonable costs to determine biofuel content at the point of uptake to an aircraft.
The monitoring and reporting guidelines (Commission Decision 2007/589/EC as amended) provide possibility in Annex I Section 13.4 for the aircraft operator to propose an estimation method for approval by the competent authority, where it is technically not feasible or disproportionately expensive to determine the biomass fraction of certain aviation biomass fuels
In addition, Section 2.3 of the Annex XIV of the monitoring and reporting guidelines provides for the possibility to use fuel purchasing records for the purpose of determination of the biomass content in the fuel.
Therefore, the following type of methodology could be proposed to the competent authority:
- The biomass fraction of all biomass based fuel used in an Annex I EU ETS aviation activity will be calculated from the fuel purchase records, which indicate the biomass fraction and net calorific value of the fuel.
It will be important to demonstrate two important criteria in the proposed methodology:
- Firstly, the total amount of biomass based fuel claimed for cannot exceed total fuel usage for that operator for Annex I EU ETS aviation activities originating from the airports at which the biofuel is supplied.
- Secondly, the fraction of biomass in the fuel can not be higher than the maximum allowable (certified) percentage of biomass in the fuel.
The calculation of biofuel use shall be independently verified. In particular the verifier must be satisfied that the percentage of fuel purchased by the aircraft operator which was used in EU ETS Annex I aviation activities has been correctly calculated.