Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions under the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) rose by 7.3% in 2021, due to higher emissions from the power sector, industry and aviation; however, they remain below their 2019 levels.
In 2021, GHG emissions from the power sector rose by more than 8.3%, as the economic recovery fuelled the electricity demand - it returned to its 2019 level - and as the surge in European gas prices incited power generation groups to shift from gas to coal. GHG emissions remained 7.3% below their 2019 level yet.
In the industrial sector, GHG emissions rose by 5.2%, with increases in most industrial branches, including iron and steel (+10%) and chemicals (+21%), highlighting the economic recovery; they were still 1.9% below their 2019 level, while industrial production returned to its 2019 level.
GHG emissions from the aviation sector rose by 8.7% in 2021 as the sector recovered from the pandemic but they were 61% below their 2019 level; in 2021, the aviation sector no longer included the United Kingdom (which was still included in 2020): taking this scope change into account, emissions from aviation covered by the current EU ETS scope rose by around 30% compared with 2020 and fell by 50% as compared with 2019.