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Germany’s green rules open fuel tax loophole
Germany’s green rules open fuel tax loophole
Hamburg, 9 January (Argus) — The introduction of increasingly stringent rules aimed at reducing CO2 emissions in Germany has opened a tax loophole that creates scope for and may have already given rise to fraud, according to market participants. The country has led the way in Europe's drive to cut emissions: it has both a greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction quota and a CO2 levy, which combined add up to levies worth some €250/t for diesel in 2025, and which could reach €415/t or more in 2026, Argus calculates. The CO2 levy was €25/t CO2e in 2021, when it was first imposed. In 2025 it was €55/t CO2e, while in 2026 the obligation will be auctioned between €55/t CO2e and €65/t CO2e with a fallback non-auction price of €68/t CO2e. The GHG reduction obligation, meanwhile, was at 10.6pc of emissions in 2025 and has risen to 12pc this year. Under Germany's implementation of the EU's latest Renewable Energy Directive (RED III), the obligation will rise to 59pc by 2040, with increases every year. Most fuel suppliers build these costs into their prices at source. But the rules for payment of the levies do not make it compulsory to do so. The GHG and CO2 duties apply to sales of fossil diesel and gasoline within each calendar year, but do not have to be paid immediately — proof of GHG compliance was due on 15 July in previous years and is now due by 1 June of the year following actual fuel sales, while CO2 emissions certificates must be submitted by 30 September. In addition, it is not clear how quickly the authorities would take legal enforcement action should these deadlines be missed. The current regulatory framework creates, at minimum, a timing gap with regard to compliance obligations and, at worst, a serious loophole — a window of opportunity allowing businesses to sell discounted diesel with no GHG compliance or CO2 duties factored into the price, and exit the market ahead of compliance deadlines and ensuing legal enforcement. Clearly, the higher the renewable tax burden, the larger the financial value of exploiting the loophole becomes. The emergence of new suppliers in 2025 offering diesel at steep discounts to prevailing market prices is therefore raising questions. Since the start of 2025, established market players say a handful of new suppliers have regularly offered and sold diesel delivered by rail and for truck loading at specific import locations at discounts of up to €60/t (for truck loading), subtracted from the previous day's inland price assessments for finished-grade product. This equates at times to discounts of about 4pc to prevailing market levels, which have ranged on average from around €1,345/t to €1,549/t over the year. The actual volume of diesel sold at such discounts last year is around 30,000t, Argus estimates — the equivalent of about 1,000 truckloads of fuel. That is less than 0.1 pc of total German deliveries for the period, but because the sales occur only in specific regions they have had a disproportionate impact in local markets. Traders say it is difficult to see how such large discounts could be the result of factors other than delayed payment of greenhouse levies. Regular energy taxes must be paid monthly, and the only other variables in the price are the actual import cost of the fuel, and logistical expenses — storage and transportation. Some wholesalers and retailers say they are now declining to buy from suppliers who consistently offer steep discounts because of concerns about potential legal repercussions — fearing they might be held accountable if their supplier does not ultimately pay the CO2 duties and/or GHG compliance costs, or even concerned they might be regarded as accessories to fraud. A number of established players in the domestic diesel market have called on German customs authorities to be more vigilant and thoroughly audit new suppliers to prevent any possible CO2 tax or GHG compliance-related fraud. The authorities could also order obligated fuel suppliers to provide a bank assurance for the payment of CO2 tax and the GHG quota, some companies suggest. Officials with German customs authorities have told Argus that they are aware of the concerns but declined to comment on what steps they are taking or might take in response. Non-payment of CO2 levies on 30,000t of diesel would have cost the government about €5.2mn in 2025, Argus calculates, while the non-compliance with GHG savings targets would reduce GHG savings demand by 14,000t of CO2e, worth around €2.2mn, reducing biofuels demand and undermining Germany's energy transition goals. Cases of proven fraud involving diesel have been reported in a number European countries in recent years, including Italy, Spain, Portugal and Romania as well as Germany, often involving designer fuels schemes or VAT fraud. Widespread fraud relating to non-compliant biofuels with faked credentials has also been of concern. But the rise in Germany's CO2 taxes and GHG obligations since 2021, and the way the government has framed the rules, may well have created a whole new set of problems. These problems may replicate themselves in other EU countries, as governments in the Netherlands and elsewhere move to emulate Germany's lead in setting emissions reductions targets. Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US exits UN climate change bodies, climate fund: Update
US exits UN climate change bodies, climate fund: Update
Adds GCF exit details, UNFCCC comment London, 8 January (Argus) — The US has withdrawn from 66 organisations, many focused on environmental and climate topics, including UN bodies the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The US has also left the UN Green Climate Fund (GCF) — the world's biggest climate fund — and will relinquish its seat on the fund's board, it said today. The administration in February 2025 cancelled about $4bn in pledged GCF funding. "Our nation will no longer fund radical organizations like the GCF whose goals run contrary to the fact that affordable, reliable energy is fundamental to economic growth and poverty reduction", US treasury secretary Scott Bessent said. The UNFCCC now has 198 parties. It was established in 1992, and is the overarching global framework for climate action, encompassing the annual Cop climate summits and the 2015 Paris climate agreement. The latter has 194 signatories, after President Donald Trump pulled the US out in January 2025 . Given the scale of UNFCCC membership, events such as Cops offer a rare opportunity for almost-total multilateralism. The IPCC, which was established in 1988, counts 194 countries as members. It assesses science related to climate change. Its reports collate best-available science and research and are viewed as the primary authority on climate change science. The US is also leaving other UN bodies and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) including the International Renewable Energy Agency, the International Solar Alliance, and energy producer-consumer dialogue group the International Energy Forum. "Many international organizations now serve a globalist project rooted in the discredited fantasy of the 'End of History', the White House said. "These organizations actively seek to constrain American sovereignty. "We will not continue expending resources, diplomatic capital, and the legitimizing weight of our participation in institutions that are irrelevant to or in conflict with our interests", it said. The US did not attend Cop 30 in November, although several US governors and regional leaders did . The US decision to leave the UNFCCC "is a strategic blunder that gives away American advantage for nothing in return," non-profit WRI's director of the US segment David Widawsky said. "Walking away doesn't just put America on the sidelines — it takes the US out of the arena entirely. American communities and businesses will lose economic ground as other countries capture the jobs, wealth, and trade created by the booming clean-energy economy." California governor Gavin Newsom (Democrat) made a similar point at Cop 30, noting China's power in clean energy and electric vehicle markets. Trump "simply doesn't understand how enthusiastic President Xi [Jinping] is today that the Trump administration is nowhere to be found at Cop 30", Newsom said. "This latest step back from global leadership, climate co-operation and science can only harm the US economy, jobs and living standards, as wildfires, floods, mega-storms and droughts get rapidly worse. It is a colossal own goal which will leave the US less secure and less prosperous", UNFCCC executive secretary Simon Stiell said today. "It will mean less affordable energy, food, transport and insurance for American households and businesses, as renewables keep getting cheaper than fossil fuels, as climate-driven disasters hit American crops, businesses and infrastructure harder each year, and as oil, coal and gas volatility drives more conflicts, regional instability and forced migration", Stiell added. The US decision is "regrettable and unfortunate", EU climate commissioner Wopke Hoekstra said. He reiterated the bloc's commitment to climate research, co-operation and action — which it pledged, along with China when the US left the Paris accord in January 2025. Bloomberg Philanthropies in January 2025 said it and other US bodies would ensure the US met funding and reporting obligations to the UNFCCC. This is not the international climate finance often discussed at UNFCCC talks, but funding that helps the climate body operate and host events such as Cops. By Georgia Gratton Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US exits UN climate change bodies, multiple NGOs
US exits UN climate change bodies, multiple NGOs
London, 8 January (Argus) — The US has withdrawn from 66 organisations, many focused on environmental and climate topics, including UN bodies the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The UNFCCC now has 198 parties. It was established in 1992, and is the overarching global framework for climate action, encompassing the annual Cop climate summits and the 2015 Paris climate agreement. The latter has 194 signatories, after President Donald Trump pulled the US out in January 2025 . Given the scale of UNFCCC membership, events such as Cops offer a rare opportunity for almost-total multilateralism. The IPCC, which was established in 1988, counts 194 countries as members. It assesses science related to climate change. Its reports collate best-available science and research and are viewed as the primary authority on climate change science. The US is also leaving other UN bodies and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) including the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena) and the International Solar Alliance. "Many international organizations now serve a globalist project rooted in the discredited fantasy of the 'End of History', the White House said "These organizations actively seek to constrain American sovereignty. "We will not continue expending resources, diplomatic capital, and the legitimizing weight of our participation in institutions that are irrelevant to or in conflict with our interests", it said. The US did not attend Cop 30 in November, although several US governors and regional leaders did . The US decision to leave the UNFCCC "is a strategic blunder that gives away American advantage for nothing in return," said non-profit WRI's director of the US segment David Widawsky. "Walking away doesn't just put America on the sidelines — it takes the US out of the arena entirely. American communities and businesses will lose economic ground as other countries capture the jobs, wealth, and trade created by the booming clean-energy economy." California governor Gavin Newsom (D) made a similar point at Cop 30, noting China's power in clean energy and electric vehicle markets. Trump "simply doesn't understand how enthusiastic President Xi [Jinping] is today that the Trump administration is nowhere to be found at Cop 30", Newsom said. The US decision is "regrettable and unfortunate", said EU climate commissioner Wopke Hoekstra. He reiterated the bloc's commitment to climate research, co-operation and action — which it pledged, along with China when the US left the Paris accord in January 2025. Bloomberg Philanthropies in January 2025 said it and other US bodies would ensure the US met funding and reporting obligations to the UNFCCC. This is not the international climate finance often discussed at UNFCCC talks, but funding that helps the climate body operate and host events such as Cops. By Georgia Gratton Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Thailand floats lower 2026 green utility tariff rate
Thailand floats lower 2026 green utility tariff rate
Singapore, 8 January (Argus) — Thailand is proposing a lower green premium for electricity users this year under its utility tariff scheme, after renewable energy certificate prices fell last year. The proposed 2026 premium for the Utility Green Tariff 1 (UGT1) scheme is Bt0.0375/kWh ($1.19/MWh), 37pc lower on the year, according to a consultation paper by the country's Energy Regulatory Commission released on 7 January. UGT1 matches end-users' power consumption with hydropower international renewable energy certificates (I-RECs). The premium is applied on top of corporate customers' power bills. The new figure is derived from an average market price of Thai hydropower I-RECs of Bt0.0286/kWh ($0.91/MWh) in January-November 2025, plus administrative fees. Thai hydro I-REC prices fell from an average of $1.32/MWh in January 2025 to $0.55/MWh in December, while solar and wind certificates dropped from $1.81/MWh to $0.55/MWh over the same period, according to Argus assessments. I-RECs for UGT1 are issued from seven hydropower plants owned by state firm Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, commissioned between the 1970s-1990s. These facilities have a combined capacity of 1.14GW and generate over 1.3 TWh/yr. Companies such as food firm Nestle and local shopping centre group Siam Piwat subscribed to UGT1 in 2025, but their contracted volume have not been disclosed. A separate UGT2 programme, drawing I-RECs from solar and wind farms, has not yet been launched. Public consultation on the latest UGT1 price revision closes on 19 January 2026. By Liang Lei Thailand 2025-vintage I-RECs price trend, 2025 $/MWh Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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