Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL amending Regulation (EU) No 525/2013 as regards the technical implementation of the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
Date: 2013-11-06
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Doha Round, Iceland, Kyoto Protocol













EUR-Lex - 52013PC0769 - EN











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52013PC0769

Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL amending Regulation (EU) No 525/2013 as regards the technical implementation of the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change /* COM/2013/0769 final - 2013/0377 (COD) */









EXPLANATORY MEMORANDUM
1.           CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL
The Doha Amendment
At the Doha Climate Change Conference in
December 2012, the 192 Parties to the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change (‘Convention’) adopted an amendment to
the Protocol.[1]
This ‘Doha Amendment’ establishes the second commitment period of the Kyoto
Protocol, starting on 1 January 2013 and ending on 31 December 2020. 
Under the Doha Amendment, the European Union,
its Member States and Iceland commit to limit their average annual greenhouse
gas (GHG) emission in the years 2013 to 2020 to 80% of their base year
emissions (mostly 1990).[2]
This commitment is based on the emission reduction targets laid down in the
climate and energy package adopted in 2009, in particular the EU’s Emissions
Trading System (EU ETS) and the Effort Sharing Decision.[3] The calculation of the
commitment takes into account the differences in scope between European Union
legislation and the Kyoto Protocol’s second commitment period.[4] This approach is in line with
the conclusions of the Council in March 2012, which stated that the joint
commitment of the European Union, its Member States and Iceland should be based
on the climate and energy package, but also that the emission reduction obligations
of individual Member States in the second commitment period of the Kyoto
Protocol ‘shall not exceed their obligations agreed in EU legislation’. This
approach was followed in the submission by the European Union and its Member States on their commitment under a second commitment period in April 2012.[5]
Apart from adopting the Doha Amendment, the
Doha Climate Change Conference also adopted a number of decisions on technical
issues related to the implementation of the substantive mitigation commitments listed
in the Doha Amendment: these include decisions on the accounting and management
of Kyoto units in the transition from the first to the second commitment period
and for the second commitment period (Decisions 1/CMP.8 and 2/CMP.8).[6]. A further set of decisions,
completing the implementation package, is in preparation, and the European
Union is working to help ensure their adoption at the Warsaw Climate Change Conference
in November 2013.
Joint fulfilment of the commitments of
the European Union, its Member States and Iceland
Article 4 of the Kyoto Protocol allows
Parties to fulfil jointly their respective commitments. The European Union and
its Member States used this option when they ratified the Kyoto Protocol in
2002 and implemented its first commitment period[7].
During the negotiations on the Doha Amendment, the European Union and its Member States made it clear that they again intended to fulfil their commitments jointly for
the second commitment period, this time also with Iceland.
Parties that agreed to fulfil their
commitments jointly are each deemed to have met those commitments if their
joint commitment is achieved (based on their aggregate greenhouse gas emissions
over the duration of the commitment period). In the event of failure to achieve
the joint commitment, however, each Party is held responsible for its emission
level set out in their joint fulfilment agreement. The Kyoto Protocol therefore
requires the Parties to a joint fulfilment agreement to set out, and notify
with the deposit of their instruments of acceptance, the respective emission
levels allocated to each member of the joint fulfilment agreement.
The terms of the joint fulfilment of the
commitment of the European Union, its Member States and Iceland is set out in Annex I of the proposal for a Council Decision on the conclusion of
the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change and the joint fulfilment of commitments thereunder.[8] The terms will also be included
in the bilateral agreement with Iceland, for which the Commission proposed to
the Council a recommendation for a negotiating mandate in June 2013. Once
agreed, these terms, including the respective emission levels, need to be
notified to the UNFCCC when the European Union, its Member States and Iceland jointly deposit their instruments of acceptance of the Doha Amendment.
Emissions accounting after 2012
The Kyoto Protocol’s second commitment
period will continue and to some extent enhance the existing comprehensive system
of emissions accounting to ensure transparency of the performance of Parties
and compliance with their obligations. At the heart of this system is the
requirement, for each Party with a commitment, to calculate an assigned amount.
This assigned amount represents the amount of tonnes each Party is allowed to
emit during the commitment period, in carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2-eq).
It is issued in the form of assigned amount units (AAUs) in each Party’s
national registry. Under the joint fulfilment agreement set out in Annex II to
the proposal for a Council Decision this means that the European Union, its
Member States and Iceland are each responsible for issuing to their national
registries AAUs representing their respective assigned amounts.
In addition to AAUs, national registries
will also hold, and account for, transactions in units resulting from the use
of the Kyoto Protocol's flexible mechanisms. These include not only AAUs, but
also certified emission reductions (CERs), for clean development mechanism
projects, emission reduction units (ERUs) for joint implementation projects, as
well as removal units (RMUs) for removals by sinks. Transactions in these units
will be subject to international requirements such as the eligibility criteria
for participation in the flexible mechanisms and those governing the commitment
period reserve (CPR). These requirements provide safeguards against a Party’s
over-selling of units where this is not justified by actual emission reductions
by that Party. In addition, the Doha Climate Change Conference agreed rules on
the transition of the first to the second commitment period, in particular in
relation to the carry-over (banking) of surplus AAUs from the first commitment
period.
Although the newly agreed Kyoto rules do not,
in principle, affect the operation of the EU ETS and the Effort Sharing
Decision, the interaction between the Kyoto Protocol’s accounting system and
the accounting rules under European Union legislation should be clarified, and
the implementation of the Kyoto rules must be aligned with those under EU
legislation. In addition, the implementation of the joint fulfilment agreement
will require further technical rules to be drawn up.
Legal basis for technical
implementation in the European Union
During the Kyoto Protocol’s first
commitment period (2008 to 2012), internationally agreed requirements were
implemented through the Monitoring Mechanism Decision[9] and the Registry Regulations
applicable for phase two of the EU ETS (2008-2012).[10] These requirements included the
accounting of emissions and units, the EU’s joint fulfilment, the unit
management required with regard to commitments under the Kyoto Protocol and
their interaction with unit management processes under the EU ETS. The Registry
Regulations contained accounting and unit management rules for implementation
of the EU ETS and for implementation of the Kyoto Protocol’s first commitment
period. The Registry Regulation currently in force[11] only contains provisions for
unit management related to the implementation and operation of phase three of
the EU ETS and the Effort-Sharing Decision. It does not regulate accounting
requirements for the technical implementation of the Protocol after 2012.
The implementation of the Kyoto Protocol
after 2012 requires a set of technical implementation rules to be drawn up for
the European Union, its Member States and Iceland. The recently adopted
Monitoring Mechanism Regulation[12]
does not contain the legal basis that would enable the Commission to do so in
relation to Member States’ national registries. Hence the need for this amendment
to the Monitoring Mechanism Regulation to provide the required legal basis.
2.           technical implementation
of the Kyoto Protocol after 2012
To ensure the technical implementation of
the Kyoto Protocol in the European Union after 2012, enable the effective
operation of the joint fulfilment of the commitments of the European Union, its
 Member States and Iceland, and ensure its alignment with the operation of the
EU ETS and the Effort Sharing Decision, technical implementation rules are
required in the European Union. These rules should address a number of issues,
including:
–                        
Unit management processes such as transactions
of Kyoto units (issuance, transfer, acquisition, cancellation, retirement,
carry-over, replacement or expiry date change) in and between the national
registries of the European Union, Member States and Iceland;
–                        
Accounting processes related to the transition
from the first to the second commitment period, including the carry-over of
surplus AAUs, CERs and ERUs from the first to the second commitment period;
–                        
The establishment and maintenance of a previous period
surplus reserve (PPSR) and a commitment period reserve (CPR) for each member of
the joint fulfilment agreement;
–                        
The levy or ‘share of proceeds’ applied to the
issuance of ERUs and the first international transfer of AAUs in the second
commitment period.
This proposal for a Regulation of the
European Parliament and of the Council provides the basis for implementing
these technical issues in the European Union through the adoption of legal
acts.
Unit management processes
The delegated acts envisaged in this
proposal are needed to ensure that all transactions of Kyoto units in the
national registries of the European Union, its Member States and Iceland are consistent with the joint fulfilment of their commitments. The transactions
include issuance, transfer, acquisition, cancellation, carry-over, replacement,
expiry date change and retirement. It is also necessary to ensure effective implementation
of unit management processes established for the accounting of emissions and
units under the EU ETS and the Effort Sharing Decision. The joint fulfilment
agreement for the second commitment period will require a further specification
of Kyoto implementation rules in the European Union.
Moreover, both the EU ETS and the Effort
Sharing Decision allow for the limited use of Kyoto units for compliance with
obligations established in EU legislation. It is essential that the technical
implementation of the Kyoto rules in the European Union provides for the full
flexibility set down in Union legislation, so that these units can be accessed
by operators in line with the provisions of the EU ETS and by Member States in
relation to their obligations under the Effort Sharing Decision. It is also
essential that the technical implementation maintains robust accounting
practices relevant to the alignment of Kyoto implementation rules with the EU
ETS and the Effort Sharing Decision. This includes the need to ensure that a Kyoto unit is issued or retired for each related EU unit being created or used for
compliance. 
In addition, the delegated acts envisaged
in this proposal are required to define an effective regulation of the
retirement of units after 2012: the achievement of the joint commitment depends
on the retirement of units by the European Union, each Member State and Iceland, according to their respective emission levels. A coherent process of the
retirement of units by the Union, the Member States and Iceland and clear
identification of the units to be retired by each Party will guarantee that
compliance under Union legislation will also mean compliance with commitments
under the Kyoto Protocol and vice versa. Moreover, such a process is needed to
safeguard the integrity of accounting under the EU ETS. Provided that operators
covered by the EU ETS comply with obligations therein, it will also guarantee
that there is no need to acquire further Kyoto units to cover those emissions
for compliance with Kyoto accounting requirements for the second commitment
period. To this end, the delegated acts envisaged in this proposal will ensure
that emissions covered by the EU ETS between 1 January 2013 and 31 December
2020 correspond to the subsequent retirement of units valid for the second
commitment period under the Kyoto Protocol. Essentially, they will ensure that
one Kyoto unit, valid for the second commitment period, is retired for each
unit surrendered in the EU ETS for emissions from sources listed in Annex A to
the Kyoto Protocol. Similarly, they will also establish that Kyoto units, valid
for the second commitment period, are retired against emissions and removals of
 Member States and Iceland in the non-ETS sectors, to the extent that these
gases, sources and sinks are covered by the Protocol.
Accounting processes related to the transition
from the first to the second commitment period
Decision 13/CMP.1, which contains the Kyoto
Protocol’s key accounting rules,[13]
sets out the provisions to enable Parties to carry over ERUs, CERs and AAUs to
the subsequent commitment period after the compliance assessment has been
completed for all Parties. Under this Decision, ERUs and CERs may be carried
over up to a limit equivalent to 2.5 % of a Party’s assigned amount. Removal units
(RMUs), temporary CERs (tCERs), long-term CERs (lCERs) and ERUs converted from
RMUs cannot be carried over. Decision 1/CMP.8 confirms the application of these
rules after 2012 and adds the requirement that carried-over AAUs must be
transferred to that Party's previous period surplus reserve (PPSR).
The percentage limit on carry-over of CERs
and ERUs is applied based on assigned amount, and CERs and ERUs valid for the
first commitment period used for compliance in phase three of the EU ETS (2013-2020)
are held in the Union Registry. For these reasons, it will be crucial that the
limit across the European Union and its Member States is applied in a way that
allows such units to be carried over for subsequent retirement. Furthermore,
the EU ETS requires accounts to be opened and maintained not only by Parties,
but also by private entities. To the extent that the holdings in these accounts
include CERs and ERUs, it will be important to establish consistent rules that
enable an optimal implementation of carry-over rules. AAUs representing
allowances banked between phase two and phase three of the EU ETS are also held
in the Union Registry. The delegated acts will therefore also need to establish
rules for the application of carry-over rules on AAUs to ensure that the
implementation of the Kyoto accounting system is aligned with that under the EU
ETS and the Effort Sharing Decision.
The establishment and maintenance of a
commitment period reserve (CPR) and a previous period surplus reserve (PPSR)
for each member of the joint fulfilment agreement;
The delegated acts envisaged in this
proposal will also need to specify the operation of the commitment period reserve
(CPR) in the national registries of the European Union, its Member States and Iceland. The international requirement to establish and maintain a CPR forms
part of each Party’s responsibility to manage and account for its assigned
amount. According to international decisions, the CPR equals the lower of
either 90 % of a Party’s initial assigned amount or 100 % of its most recently
reviewed inventory, multiplied by 8. The CPR applies to each member of the
joint fulfilment agreement individually. As the assigned amount of the Member
States and Iceland only covers non-ETS sectors and the assigned amount of the Union
covers the ETS sectors, the delegated acts envisaged in this proposal are
required to determine a coherent approach for the accurate calculation, and
transparent reporting, of the respective commitment period reserves of the
European Union, its Member States and Iceland.
Decision 1/CMP.8 requires each Party to
establish a previous period surplus reserve (PPSR) account in its national
registry and establishes associated rules for the PPSR as follows: units may be
transferred between PPSR accounts; each Party may retire the units in its own
PPSR up to the level by which emissions during the second commitment period
exceed the assigned amount; and a Party may acquire units up to 2 % of its
assigned amount in the previous commitment period from another Party’s PPSR. The
European Union, its Member States and Iceland are each responsible to establish
and maintain a PPSR in accordance with internationally agreed rules and the
terms of the joint fulfilment. It is necessary to define the scope of each PPSR
pursuant to the definition of the emission levels set out in Annex I to the
proposed Council Decision. It is also necessary to establish common rules on
the opening balance,[14]
and on the use and acquisition of units in the PPSRs of the European Union, its
 Member States and Iceland.
Share of proceeds applied to AAUs and
ERUs
Decision 1/CMP.8 subjects the first
international transfer of AAUs and the issuance of ERUs to a 2 % share of
proceeds levy. In so far as this levy applies to the issuance of ERUs, this will
fall under the responsibility of each Member State and Iceland. Nonetheless, to the extent that AAU balances must be maintained to ensure that a
valid Kyoto unit can be retired for each unit used for compliance with the Effort
Sharing Decision, the delegated acts envisaged in this proposal are required to
ensure that the accounting for the application of the share of proceeds levy is
aligned with the requirements of European Union legislation.
3.           Legal aspects of this proposal
This proposal amends the legal basis,
contained in the Monitoring Mechanism Regulation, which enables the Commission
to adopt non-legislative acts establishing rules on non-essential elements for
the accounting of Kyoto units after 2012 in EU law. The essential elements as
regards the commitments of the European Union, its Member States and Iceland, their implementation and joint fulfilment are laid down in a number of legal
instruments, including the separate proposal for a Council Decision. They will
also be addressed in the bilateral agreement with Iceland and are included in the
Doha Amendment and accompanying decisions of the Conference of the Parties
serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol, as well as the
Monitoring Mechanism Regulation and the delegated and implementing acts adopted
thereunder.
Previously, under former Registry
Regulations, such rules were adopted under the procedure of a regulatory committee
with scrutiny. They were based on a legal basis contained in the Monitoring
Mechanism Decision. The legal basis which enabled the implementation of
technical issues related to the management of units in the first commitment
period of the Kyoto Protocol through adoption of the Registry Regulations was
contained in Articles 3(3) and 6(1), of the Monitoring Mechanism Decision. It
referred, inter alia, to the need to adopt implementing comitology provisions
as regards reports on the information from the national registry, on the issue,
acquisition, holding, transfer, cancellation, withdrawal and carry-over of assigned
amount units, removal units, emission reduction units and certified emission
reductions during the previous year. It also provided for the adoption of
comitology measures as regards the requirement of the Community and its Member States,
to ‘establish and maintain registries in order to ensure the accurate
accounting of the issue, holding, transfer, acquisition, cancellation and
withdrawal of assigned amount units, removal units, emission reduction units
and certified emission reductions and the carryover of assigned amount units,
emission reduction units and certified emission reductions’.
The Monitoring Mechanism Decision was
repealed and replaced by the Monitoring Mechanism Regulation, which entered
into force on 8 July 2013. The Monitoring Mechanism Regulation refers to the
registry system which enables the technical implementation of the Kyoto
Protocol with regard to the unit management in national registries in its
Article 10 (‘Establishment and operation of registries’). It contains the essential
element of the international requirement for the Union and its Member States
‘to set up and maintain registries to accurately account for the issue,
holding, transfer, acquisition, cancellation, retirement, carry-over,
replacement or change of expiry date, as relevant, of AAUs, RMUs, ERUs, CERs,
tCERs and lCERs. Article 10 (4) also contains a legal basis for the adoption of
a delegated act which implements the non-essential elements of the technical
implementation of the Kyoto Protocol with regard to the unit management in
national registries, replacing the former Article 6 (1) of the Monitoring
Mechanism Decision. However, while Article 6 (1) of the Monitoring Mechanism
Decision applied to all unit management issues in ‘the registries of the
Community and its Member States’, the scope of application of this provision
has been narrowed in the Monitoring Mechanism Regulation. The legal basis for
the adoption of delegated acts now only applies to the ‘set up’ (rather than
the establishment and maintenance) of the ‘Union Registry’ (rather than
the registries of the Union and Member States). 
In order to
establish an effective registries system that implements the new requirements
for unit management in the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol, it
is therefore necessary to amend Article 10 of the Monitoring Mechanism. Its
scope of application must be widened to include all technical implementation
issues with regard to the unit management in national registries as required by
the Kyoto Protocol, the Doha Amendment and decisions adopted thereunder for the
second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol.
Based on the content of the rules that need
to be adopted in the legal acts provided for in this proposal according to the
above, these legal acts must also be adopted as delegated acts pursuant to
Article 290 TFEU, in the same way as already provided for in Article 10 (4), of
the Monitoring Mechanism Regulation.
A delegated act supplements the essential
rules by specifying its substance and regulating further detail. It is
different from an implementing act pursuant to Article 291 TFEU which provides
for uniform conditions in the implementation of Union legislation by the Member
States. As shown above, the accounting requirements to be implemented after 2012
do not solely stem from EU legislation, but are to a large extent based on
internationally agreed rules. Also, they are not implemented by the Member
States alone, but they apply equally to the European Union itself, placing an
obligation on EU institutions. As provided for by Article 290 TFEU, the
delegated acts envisaged in this proposal would not harmonise the
implementation of any existing essential rules, but rather set out further
specific technical details for the implementation of the Kyoto Protocol after
2012.
2013/0377 (COD)
Proposal for a
REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
AND OF THE COUNCIL
amending Regulation (EU) No 525/2013 as
regards the technical implementation of the Kyoto Protocol to the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
(Text with EEA relevance)
THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE
COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,
Having regard to the Treaty on the
Functioning of the European Union, and in particular Article 192 (1) thereof,
Having regard to the proposal from the
European Commission,
After transmission of the draft legislative
act to the national Parliaments,
Having regard to the opinion of the
European Economic and Social Committee[15],
Having regard to the opinion of the
Committee of the Regions[16],
Acting in accordance with the ordinary
legislative procedure,
Whereas:
(1)       The Council adopted
Decision […] on the conclusion of the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol to
the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the joint
fulfilment of commitments thereunder.[17]
The Decision concludes the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol to the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (‘UNFCCC’), establishing a
second commitment period, on behalf of the Union, and sets out the terms of the
joint fulfilment of the commitments of the Union, its Member States and Iceland
in accordance with Article 4 of the Kyoto Protocol.
(2)       The conclusion of the Doha
Amendment, the implementation of accompanying decisions of the Conference of
the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol and the
terms of the joint fulfilment in the Union, its Member States and Iceland
require the establishment of rules to ensure the technical implementation of
the Kyoto Protocol in the Union after 2012, to enable the effective operation
of the joint fulfilment of the commitments of the Union, its Member States and
Iceland, and to ensure its alignment with the operation of the Union’s Emissions
Trading System (‘EU ETS’) established by Directive 2003/87/EC of the European
Parliament and of the Council[18]
and Decision 406/2009/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council.[19]
(3)       During the first
commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol, the internationally agreed
requirements for the accounting and management of emissions and units and the
joint fulfilment by the Union and its Member States were implemented under
Decision No 280/2004/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council[20] and the so-called Registry
Regulations[21].
The former Registry Regulations were replaced by Commission Regulation (EU) No
389/2013[22],
which now contains provisions for unit management related to the implementation
and operation of the EU ETS and Decision 406/2009/EC.[23] The newly adopted Regulation (EU) No 525/2013 of the European Parliament and
of the Council[24] no longer contains the required legal basis for the adoption of
delegated legislation to implement the rules for the second commitment period.
(4)       For the second commitment
period, the assigned amount of the Union relates to the emissions of greenhouse
gases from sources covered by the EU ETS, to the extent that these are covered
by the Kyoto Protocol, while the respective assigned amounts of Member States
and Iceland relate to all other emissions of greenhouse gases from sources and
removals from sinks covered by the Kyoto Protocol. 
(5)       Decision 1/CMP.8[25] amends the rules for the
establishment of eligibility to participate in the flexible mechanisms under
the Kyoto Protocol. It also defines limits related to units carried-over from
the first to the second commitment period, including the requirement for each
Party to establish a previous period surplus reserve (PPSR). Moreover, that
Decision provides for a 2 % share of the proceeds to be levied on the first
international transfers of assigned amount units (AAUs) and the issuance of emission
reduction units (ERUs) for joint implementation projects immediately upon the
conversion to ERUs of AAUs or removal units (RMUs) previously held by Parties. Further
rules for the implementation of the Kyoto Protocol’s second commitment period
are currently being negotiated.
(6)       In order to establish
coherent rules to ensure the technical implementation of the Kyoto Protocol in
the Union after 2012, to enable the effective operation of the joint fulfilment
of the commitments of the Union, its Member States and Iceland, and ensure its
alignment with the operation of the EU ETS and the Effort Sharing Decision, the
power to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should be
delegated to the Commission. The Commission, when preparing and drawing up
delegated acts, should ensure their consistency with internationally agreed
accounting requirements, the terms of the joint fulfilment set out in Decision
[…] and relevant Union legislation,
HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:
Article 1
Regulation
(EU) No 525/2013 is amended as follows: 
1.           the following points (13a)
and (13b) are added to Article 3:
“(13a) ‘Commitment period reserve’ or ‘CPR’
means the reserve established pursuant to the Annex to Decision 11/CMP.1 or other
relevant decisions of the UNFCCC or Kyoto Protocol bodies;
(13b) ‘Previous period surplus reserve’ or
‘PPSR’ means the reserve established pursuant to Decision 1/CMP.8 or other relevant
decisions of the UNFCCC or Kyoto Protocol bodies;”
2.           Article 10 is amended as
follows:
(a)      the following subparagraph is added to
Article 10(1):
“The Union and the Member States shall account,
in their registries, for the transfer of units required by the Kyoto Protocol,
Decision 1/CMP.8 or other relevant decisions of the UNFCCC or Kyoto Protocol
bodies as a share of proceeds following the issuance of ERUs and on the first
international transfer of AAUs.”
(b)     the following paragraph 5 is added to
Article 10:
“5.        The Commission shall also be
empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 25 in order to
ensure, through the registries of the Union and of the Member States, the
technical implementation of the Kyoto Protocol, enable the effective operation
of the joint fulfilment of the commitments of the Union, the Member States and
Iceland, and ensure its alignment with the operation of Directive 2003/87/EC and
Decision 406/2009/EC, including:
(a)          
unit management processes such as transactions
of AAUs, CERs, including lCERs and tCERs, ERUs and RMUs (issuance, transfer,
acquisition, cancellation, retirement, carry-over, replacement or expiry date
change) in and between the national registries of the Union and its Member
States and Iceland;
(b)         
accounting processes related to the transition
from the first to the second commitment period, including the carry-over of
surplus AAUs, CERs and ERUs from the first to the second commitment period;
(c)          
the establishment and maintenance of a previous period
surplus reserve and a commitment period reserve for the Union and the Member State  s;
(d)         
the accounting for the share of proceeds as
provided for by paragraph 1 of this Article.
When adopting the delegated acts referred to in
the first subparagraph, the Commission shall ensure a consistent implementation
of internationally agreed accounting requirements, optimise transparency and
ensure accuracy of the accounting of Kyoto units by the Union and the Member
States, while minimising administrative burden and costs.”
Article 2
This Regulation shall enter into force on
the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal
of the European Union.
Done at Brussels,
For the European Parliament                       For
the Council
The President                                                 The
President
[1]               Decision 1/CMP.8, adopted by
the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the
Kyoto Protocol, FCCC/KP/CMP/2012/13/Add.1
[2]               For the first commitment period, EU base years were
as follows: for CO2, CH4 and N2O all Member
States use 1990 as base year except: Bulgaria – 1988; Hungary - average of 1985 to 1987; Slovenia – 1986; Poland – 1988; Romania - 1989. For the
fluorinated gases all Member States use 1995 as base year except: Austria, France, Italy and Slovakia – 1990; and Romania - 1989.
[3]               Legislation adopted on 23 April 2009, including
Directive 2009/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council amending
Directive 2003/87/EC so as to improve and extend the greenhouse gas emission
allowance trading scheme of the Community and Decision No 406/2009/EC of the
European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on the effort of Member
States to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to meet the Community’s
greenhouse gas emission reduction commitments up to 2020, OJ L 140, 5.6. 2009.
[4]               This difference in scope is explained in detail in
the Commission Staff Working Document ‘Preparing the EU's Quantified Emission
Limitation or Reduction Objective (QELRO) based on the EU Climate and Energy
Package’, SWD(2012) 18 final of 13.2.2012.
[5]               Submission by Denmark and the European Commission on
behalf of the European Union and its Member States of 19 April 2012 on
‘Information on the quantified emission limitation or reduction objectives
(QELROs) for the second commitment period under the Kyoto Protocol’, FCCC/KP/AWG/2012/MISC.1.
[6]               Footnote 1, above.
[7]               Council Decision 2002/358/CE of
25 April 2002 concerning the approval, on behalf of the European Community, of
the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
and the joint fulfilment of commitments thereunder, OJ L 130/1, 15.5.2002, p.
1.
[8]               COM(2013) 768 final.
[9]               Decision No 280/2004/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11
February 2004 concerning a mechanism for monitoring Community greenhouse gas
emissions and for implementing the Kyoto Protocol, OJ L 49, 19.2.2004, p. 1.
[10]             Commission Regulation (EC) No 2216/2004 of 21 December
2004 for a standardised and secured system of registries pursuant to Directive
2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Decision No
280/2004/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, OJ L 386,
29.12.2004, p. 1 and Commission Regulation (EU) No
920/2010 of 7 October 2010 for a standardised and secured
system of registries pursuant to Directive 2003/87/EC of the European
Parliament and of the Council and Decision No 280/2004/EC of the European
Parliament and of the Council, OJ L 270, 14.10.2010, p. 1.
[11]             Commission Regulation (EU) No 389/2013 of 2 May 2013 establishing a Union Registry
pursuant to Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council,
Decisions No 280/2004/EC and No 406/2009/EC of the European Parliament and of
the Council and repealing Commission Regulations (EU) No 920/2010 and No 1193/2011,
OJ L 122, 3.5.2013, p. 1.
[12]             Regulation (EU) No 525/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 May
2013 on a mechanism for monitoring and reporting greenhouse gas emissions and
for reporting other information at national and Union level relevant to climate
change and repealing Decision No 280/2004/EC, OJ L 165, 18.6.2013, p. 13.
[13]             Decision 13/CMP/1 on Modalities
for the accounting of assigned amounts under Article 7, paragraph 4, of the
Kyoto Protocol, in: FCCC/KP/CMP/2005/8/Add.2.
[14]             The initial balance of the European Union PPSR, to be
established in the Union Registry, will primarily consist of AAUs held in the
Union Registry in accordance with Article 56 of Regulation 920/2010/EC which
represent EU ETS allowances banked in accordance with Article 57 of Regulation
920/2010/EC. The initial balance of each PPSR of Member States and Iceland will consist of the AAUs carried over in each national registry.
[15]             OJ C , , p. .
[16]             OJ C , , p. .
[17]             OJ L , , p. .
[18]             Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of
the Council of 13 October 2003 establishing a scheme for greenhouse gas
emission allowance trading within the Community and amending Council Directive
96/61/EC (OJ L 275/32, 25.10.2003).
[19]             Decision No 406/2009/EC of the European Parliament and
of the Council of 23 April 2009 on the effort of Member States to reduce their
greenhouse gas emissions to meet the Community’s greenhouse gas emission
reduction commitments up to 2020 (OJ L 140, 5.6. 2009).
[20]             Decision No 280/2004/EC of the European Parliament and
of the Council of 11 February 2004 concerning a mechanism for monitoring
Community greenhouse gas emissions and for implementing the Kyoto Protocol (OJ
L 49, 19.2.2004, p. 1).
[21]             Commission Regulation (EC) No 2216/2004 of 21 December
2004 for a standardised and secured system of registries pursuant to Directive
2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Decision No
280/2004/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ L 386,
29.12.2004, p. 1) and Commission Regulation No 920/2010
of 7 October 2010 for a standardised and secured system of
registries pursuant to Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of
the Council and Decision No 280/2004/EC of the European Parliament and of the
Council (OJ L 270, 14.10.2010, p. 1.)
[22]             Commission Regulation (EU) No 389/2013 of 2 May 2013 establishing a Union Registry
pursuant to Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council,
Decisions No 280/2004/EC and No 406/2009/EC of the European Parliament and of
the Council and repealing Commission Regulations (EU) No 920/2010 and No 1193/2011,
OJ L 122, 3.5.2013, p. 1.
[23]             Decision No 406/2009/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 April
2009 on the effort of Member States to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to
meet the Community’s greenhouse gas emission reduction commitments up to 2020,
OJ L 140, 5.6.2009, p.136.
[24]             Regulation (EU) No 525/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 21 May
2013 on a mechanism for monitoring and reporting greenhouse gas emissions and
for reporting other information at national and Union level relevant to climate
change and repealing Decision No 280/2004/EC, OJ L 165, 18.6.2013, p. 13.
[25]             Decision 1/CMP.8, adopted by
the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the
Kyoto Protocol, FCCC/KP/CMP/2012/13/Add.1.