Another hit to the pockets of Poles. We will pay more for fuel and gas. Due to EU regulations

As part of the EU’s climate policy, a new emissions trading system called ETS2 was created in 2023, independent of the existing EU ETS. It will deal with CO2 emissions from fuel combustion, primarily in buildings and road transport. It is to start operating comprehensively in 2027, but work on its implementation is already underway.

Poland is preparing for EU regulations

The launch of the system in 2027 is expected to be smooth, so from 2025 onwards, entities regulated by the ETS2 system are required to have a greenhouse gas emissions permit and an approved plan for monitoring and reporting their annual emissions.

The Ministry of Climate and Environment reported “” that it is working on regulations implementing this system in Poland. It is to present the finished project by September. “The entities operating in the field of admitting motor fuels and fuels for combustion used in heating and road transport will be covered by the regulation, and they will have to buy and settle emission allowances,” it was written in response.

Importantly, it is fuel suppliers, not end consumers such as households or car users, who will be required to monitor and report their emissions. This means that companies will have to surrender enough allowances to cover their emissions. They will buy allowances at auctions. Hence the fear that the introduction of the new system could affect prices for end consumers.

Will fuel and energy prices rise?

– The effect of the new obligations will be similar to a tax anyway – says Leszek Wiwała, president and general director of the Polish Organization of the Oil Industry and Trade. In an interview with “Rzeczpospolita” he calculated that in the first two years of the new system, fuel prices will increase by 40 groszy per liter, and in subsequent years the increases will be even more significant.

estimates that “higher carbon prices would be particularly painful for poorer households. We estimate that the average annual increase in energy costs would be 44 percent in transport and 50 percent in the buildings sector for households in the first (poorest) income quintile.” An alternative could be the use of low-carbon fuels, which could soon become cheaper.

The ETS2 limit will be set to reduce emissions by 42% by 2030 compared to 2005 levels. However, the European Union has guaranteed that in the event of exceptionally high gas or oil prices in 2026, the launch of the ETS2 system may be postponed until 2028.