Following the revelation of regulatory gaps in greenhouse gas certificate trading, the Federal Association for Electronic Mobility (BEM) is advocating consistent regulation and strengthening of trading mechanisms. In a statement to the Federal Ministry for the Environment and the Federal Ministry of Economics, the association called for a uniform interpretation of the law and criticized the current staffing and resources of the responsible subordinate bodies.
Numerous media outlets have reported vague specifications for the “public charging infrastructure” criterion under the keyword “wall box bonus”. The question is whether private charging station providers who only make their charging stations available to the public for short periods during the day can also engage in so-called greenhouse gas trading.
The Federal Environmental Protection Agency and the Federal Grid Agency have issued a clarification that charging points in private parking lots are generally not considered public access. According to BEM, this interpretation of the law is contrary to the regulation on charging stations, according to which a charging point is public if it is accessible or should be accessible to the general public at any time. An hour a day is not enough for this.
The Association confirmed the view that only public charging points that are publicly available at any time and registered with the Federal Grid Agency, fulfill all obligations and do not object to publication, are eligible to bid on greenhouse gas emission allowances, regardless of their location. All other payment points are explicitly excluded from greenhouse gas trading.
BEM cited “the urgent need to address existing staffing shortages and outdated operating practices at the Federal Environment Agency that ensure that ongoing greenhouse gas trading is subject to significant delays, creating competitive distortions among market participants.” Now is a good time to correct the weaknesses in the regulatory regime and arm the system for future challenges. According to BEM, the volume of at least 400,000 public charging points and the millionth expansion of electric mobility cannot currently be realized in the greenhouse gas trade.
Source: Ecomento
