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German chemical industry calls ETS2 carbon scheme a 'gravedigger' after Merz backs EU plan

Chancellor Merz urged the European Commission to hold the line on ETS2, the EU's expanded carbon-pricing system due in 2028, triggering a sharp rebuke from chemical sector group VCI.

Vitesse:

Pierre Dubois

il y a 32 heures · 2 min read

Bundeskanzler Friedrich Merz at the ceremony awarding the Charlemagne Prize to Mario Draghi · Photo: Grunpfnul / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Key takeaways

Chancellor Friedrich Merz wrote to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen that he is "counting on the European Commission to stay the course on emissions trading," rejecting further changes or delays to ETS2, according to Der Spiegel.
ETS2, which puts an EU-wide carbon price on petrol, diesel and heating fuels, has already slipped from 2027 to 2028, and several EU governments want it delayed again over household fuel and heating costs.
Germany's national carbon price sits at €55–65 per tonne of CO2 and is due to be frozen in 2027 before ETS2 replaces it.
VCI CEO Wolfgang Grosse Entrup argues German firms have paid a national carbon levy on transport and heating fuels since 2021 while several other member states have no comparable charge, leaving them exposed to a lasting cost disadvantage.
BASF and other major producers say EU climate rules already put them behind Chinese and US competitors, and VCI warns added carbon costs could speed up plant closures, investment cuts and relocation outside Europe.

Germany's chemical industry has sharply attacked Chancellor Friedrich Merz after he urged European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to press ahead with the EU's expanded carbon-pricing scheme, warning the plan would become "the gravedigger of industry in Europe."

In a letter to von der Leyen, Merz rejected further changes or delays to ETS2 — the EU Emissions Trading System that will set an EU-wide price on carbon from petrol, diesel and heating fuels. He wrote that he was "counting on the European Commission to stay the course on emissions trading," according to German weekly Der Spiegel, adding that this would give European companies and households planning certainty. Merz said the question was not merely about climate policy but "about the future of industry in Germany and Europe."

ETS2 was originally due to begin in 2027 but has been postponed to 2028. Germany's existing national carbon price currently stands at between €55 and €65 per tonne of CO2 and is due to be frozen in 2027 before ETS2 replaces it.

Wolfgang Grosse Entrup, CEO of Germany's chemical industry association the VCI, said the scheme would add to costs already borne by German firms, which have paid a national carbon levy on transport and heating fuels since 2021. Because several other EU member states have no comparable national levy, German companies fear they would suffer a lasting competitive disadvantage if the EU scheme slipped further. Major chemical producers including BASF argue that stringent European climate rules already place them at a disadvantage against competitors in China and the United States.

The VCI's language reflects anxiety that additional carbon costs could accelerate plant closures, investment cuts and the relocation of production outside Europe.

Merz also defended ETS1 — the existing trading system covering power plants and heavy industry — calling it "a well-functioning, market-based system that we must not call into question." Several EU governments, concerned about higher fuel and heating costs for households, are pressing for another delay to ETS2.

Sources — how we know this

PrimaryRFI English12 nov. 2026