The European Parliament on April 18 voted 463 to 117 to implement a revision to the European Union’s Emissions Trading System that will phase out free allowances for the aviation sector by 2026 and promote the use of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).

To help promote the use of SAF, the revised program reserves 20 million allowances, between 2024 and 2030, for commercial aircraft operators that increase their use of SAF, including renewable hydrogen, renewable fuels from non-biological origin and advanced biofuels.

The vote related to SAF was part of a larger action taken by the Parliament to approve deals reached with EU countries in late 2022 on several key pieces of legislation that are part of the Fit for 55 in 2030 Package, which aims to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the EU by at least 55 percent by 2030 when compared to a 1990 baseline.

As part of that effort, Members of European Parliament voted to reform the ETS. The updated program aims to cut GHG emissions in ETS sectors by 62 percent by 2030 when compared to a 2005 baseline. The reformed program also phases out free allowances to companies from 2026 to 2034 and creates a separate new ETS II for fuel for road transport and buildings that will put a price on GHG emissions from these sectors as soon as 2027. MEPs also voted to include GHG emissions from the maritime sector in the ETS.

Additional information on the updated ETS is available on the European Parliament website.