EU expects 17 bn euros from carbon tax, other revenues

The EU said on Wednesday it could raise up to 17 billion euros ($19 billion) annually through a carbon border tax, emissions trading and taxes on big corporations.

Money from the three new revenue streams would go to pay down debt raised to cover a chunk of the bloc's 800-billion-euro coronavirus recovery fund, branded as NextGenerationEU, that is being shared between member states.

EU budget commissioner Johannes Hahn, who laid out details of the package in a media conference, said the projected 17-billion-euro windfall would only be realised in 2026-2030, when the measures reached "cruising speed".

"This well-calibrated package will not only provide a steady stream of revenue used for the repayment of NextGenerationEU but also align the revenue side of the union budget with the union's policy goals: the green and digital transition," Hahn said.

The European Parliament and EU member states have to sign off on the package for it to come into force.

The carbon border tax, the most controversial of the instruments, is projected to bring in one billion euros a year from 2026.

It would be a levy on imports in targeted sectors coming from countries whose production lags the EU in terms of costly carbon reduction policies.

The European Commission says the "carbon border adjustment mechanism" will be compliant with World Trade Organization rules.

Another tax, on emissions trading within the EU, already exists but currently money from it goes into the national coffers of EU member states.

Under the package, 25 percent of money from that tax would be transferred to the EU budget, raising around 12 billion euros a year over 2026-2030.

Finally, the tax on big corporations is money raised from an OECD deal validated by the G20 that sets a minimum 15 percent tax on the world's biggest companies.

The Commission contemplates getting a 15-percent slice of what that tax raises in the EU, for an annual amount estimated at between 2.5 billion and 4.0 billion euros a year.

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