Während in Deutschland und Europa die Energiepreise weiterhin am steigen sind und ein Ende der Preisexplosion nicht abzusehen ist, machen Energiekonzerne auf dem Rücken des Kyoto Protokolls Profite in Milliardenhöhe. Dabei haben skeptische Wissenschaftler seit Jahren vor den wirtschaftlichen Folgekosten einer überhasteten und unilateralen Klimapolitik gewarnt. Jetzt bezahlen die Europäer den Preis für die Klimahysterie aus eigener Tasche. Aller Wahrscheinlichkeit wird es künftig noch sehr viel teuer kommen, denn die Politik hat ganz offensichtlich nichts aus dem Kyoto Debakel gelernt.
Britain’s electricity generators could make windfall profits of about £1.5bn a year from the European Union’s emissions trading scheme, industry estimates suggest, raising further questions about the operation of the programme intended to combat global warming.
Across Europe, the profits could add up to about €20bn (£13.6bn) a year.
The profits are created because of the way the emissions trading scheme works, rather than because of sharp practice by the companies. Electricity prices are higher as a result of the scheme. But generators’ costs do not rise to the same extent, as they are given most of their permits for free.
In phase two of the scheme, which runs from 2008 to 2012, the price of permits is about €23 a tonne of carbon dioxide, and UK electricity companies have been allocated permits for 104m tonnes of carbon dioxide a year. In the first phase of the scheme, 2005-07, it is thought the total windfall profit for the generators was about £2bn.
For some companies, these profits are significant. Peter Atherton, an analyst at Citigroup, estimates that for Drax, which owns Britain’s biggest coal-fired power station in Yorkshire, the value of emissions permits could represent about half of next year’s profits.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/4c7709e4-1cea-11dc-9b58-000b5df10621.html