DBDH in the media: Cheap climate pollution a threat to Danish business

Translated extract from Danish newspaper Berlingske:
The cheap air pollution in Europe is a serious problem for the exports of green Danish technology. Since 2008, exports of green solutions and technology to the important European market declined by about 18 percent, according to numbers from Dansk Energi (the organization Danish Energy) downloaded from Statistics Denmark and Eurostat. In the same period, the total Danish exports decreased by six procent. The economic crisis but also the low price of CO2 allowances in particular are to be blamed for this Danish export decline.

The European Parliament has now rejected Climate Commissioner Connie Hedegaard´s attempt to save the European CO2 Emission Trading System (ETS). Business Organization Danish Industry (DI) worked for a “no” to Connie Hedegaard´s proposal – and got it. Thus, the organization has pushed hard at a group of green member companies, which were already wounded and needed help. Vestas, Danfoss, Grundfos and DONG Energy all worked actively for a “yes” to the now rejected proposal because the low price of CO2 allowances affect their business. One exmple is DONG Energy: Karsten Andersen, Communication Manager, says that a significant part of the loss of their gas business the previous years “are due to the very low ETS as well as the low coal price as a consequence of cheap shale gas from USA.”

Lars Hummelmose, Managing Director, Fjernvarmeindustrien DBDH, says that “if no policy measures to help re-establish the ETS allowances are implemented quickly; it will mean a loss worth billions in exports of Danish energy technologies and also the loss of thousands of Danish jobs.”

Read the article here (Danish)