FAQ

All companies (installations, aircraft operators and trading accounts) that participate in the ETS can be accessed under the following link:

Website des European Union Transaction Logs (EUTL)

After selecting "Accounts" on the left side of the page, you can sort by country and account type.

No - in the European Emission Trading System (ETS), allowances are not generated by mitigation measures. Usually they have to be purchased in auctions or from other market participants. Some market participants, who are obliged to participate in the ETS, can apply for free allowances under certain conditions.

There was a mechanism under the Kyoto-Protocol (Clean Development Mechanism – CDM), that allowed for mitigation projects or removal projects to generate units, such as Certified Emission Reductions (CERs, t-CERs, l-CERs). For further information about this mechanism, please use the link below “UNFCCC - Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)”. Those projects are hosted in countries that have no emission target under the Kyoto-Protocol at country level. Another mechanism created Emission Reduction Units (ERU) in projects, hosted in countries where an emission target has been set at country level. Austria has chosen, not to host these types of projects.

CDM: CDM-Home (unfccc.int)

Since 1 May 2021, CERs and ERUs may only be transferred to accounts of the Kyoto Protocol Registry. After 1 July 2023, they may no longer be held in accounts of the EU emissions trading system. After this date, the National Administrator will request account holders, still holding Kyoto units, to nominate, within 40 working days, a Kyoto Protocol account to which these credit should be transferred. Under the Paris-Agreement, the rules for similar mechanisms have not yet been finalized

Currently mitigation projects or removal projects (e.g. concerning afforestation) in Austria cannot be used to create tradeable units in the context of the European Emission Trading System or the Paris Agreement. For the voluntary compensation of emissions, there is the option to use the voluntary cancellation of units of the CDM-Kyoto-mechanism until the finalization of the „additional period for fulfilling commitments” of the second Kyoto-commitment period. For further information on how to perform this process, please use the link below to the website of the UNFCCC - CDM Registry.

CDM: CDM Registry (unfccc.int)

Another option is to donate for mitigation projects in Austria or elsewhere. There are several collectors of donations for mitigation projects and some of them adhere to most of the rules of the CDM mechanism or go beyond these rules. Some issue a receipt for the donation or a documantation of the resulting emission reduction. These voluntary activities are called “voluntary carbon market”.

In Austria, electricity used in road transport can be used for companies selling fossil fuels, to achieve their mandatory substitution targets or their mandatory GHG-mitigation targets. For more details, please visit the website of the Environmental Agency Austria with the link below (using a translation tool) or contact  Strom-KVO@umweltbundesamt.at.

“Anrechnung (erneuerbarer) Strom (umweltbundesamt.at)” (in german, please use a translation tool)

As of 1 January 2025, companies must report emissions for the following ships:

• Cargo and passenger ships of or above 5000 GT;
• Offshore ships of or above 5000 GT;
• Offshore ships and general cargo ships below 5000 GT but not below 400 GT.

Shipping companies must surrender (use) their first ETS allowances by 30 September 2025 for emissions reported in 2024.

The share of emissions that must be covered by allowances gradually increases each year:

• 2025: 40% of emissions reported for 2024 must be covered by emission allowances
• 2026: 70% of emissions reported for 2025
• 2027 and beyond: 100% of reported emissions

Each shipping company covered by the ETS has to be associated with the administering authority of one Member State.

A shipping company is associated to a Member State according to the attribution list published by the Commission on 31 January 2024 (Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2024/411). To ensure stability, a shipping company remains assigned to the Member State indicated in the list regardless of subsequent changes in the shipping company’s activities or changes in registration, until those variations are reflected in a new version of the list. Please note that the list will only be updated every two years (or every four years for non-EEA companies attributed to a Member State based on their ports of call in the last four monitoring years), in accordance with the rules laid down In Article 3gf(2) of the EU ETS Directive 2023/959.

For new shipping companies not included in the attribution list but performing voyages covered by the EU ETS Directive 2023/959, the rules spelled out in Article 3gf of the Directive apply. Based on these rules, companies should therefore identify which is their administering authority via the THETIS-MRV system.

The THETIS-MRV helpdesk will help the companies assign their responsible administering authority in the system. The helpdesk may be contacted through the following email address: thetis@emsa.europa.eu.

Once associated with an administering authority, the company will then be added to the next update of the attribution list.

The current Commission Implementing Decision on the list of shipping companies specifying the administering authority in respect of a shipping company in accordance with Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council (Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2024/411) does NOT assign any shipping company to Austria as administrating state. 

Please refer to the corresponding member state noted for your company in the commission implementing decision or contact the THETIS-MRV Helpdesk regarding the account opening of a MOHA.

The rules to associate shipping companies to administering authorities are laid down in Article 3gf(1) of the EU ETS Directive 2023/959, i.e.:

In case of a shipping company registered in an EU Member State, it is the EU Member State where the shipping company is registered;

In case of a shipping company not registered in an EU Member State, it is the EU Member State with the greatest estimated number of port calls from voyages performed by that shipping company over the last four monitoring years;

In case of a shipping company that is not registered in an EU Member State and that did not carry out any voyage covered by the EU ETS Directive 2023/959 in the preceding four monitoring years, the administering authority is the EU Member State where a ship of the shipping company has arrived or has started its first voyage falling within the scope of the EU ETS Directive 2023/959.

No. Not being on the attribution list does not exempt companies from ETS obligations. Any shipping company with ships doing voyages covered by the ETS during a reporting period shall comply with the relevant ETS obligations. If a shipping company is not on the list, it shall determine its administering authority in line with the ETS Directive 2023/959. To do so, the company should:

• create a user account in the THETIS-MRV system (if not already existing)
• add the new company to the user account
• follow the steps for attributing the new company to an administering authority

The THETIS-MRV Helpdesk (thetis@emsa.europa.eu) will be available assist the company in assigning its responsible administering authority in the system (according to Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2024/411). 

The company should then request the opening of a Maritime Operator Holding Account (MOHA) in the Registry and contact the relevant national administrator for this purpose.

On the other hand, an entity on the attribution list might not be subject to ETS obligations if it does not fulfil the conditions to be considered a ‘shipping company’ or if it does not have any active ship falling within ETS scope under its responsibility – despite being on the list due to past activities.

Firstly, the company should create a user account in THETIS-MRV (if not already existing) and add the new company to that account.

If established in an EEA country, according to the information recorded in THETIS-MRV, the company may already send a request to the THETIS-MRV Helpdesk(thetis@emsa.europa.eu) to be assigned to the administering authority of that EEA country.

If established in a non-EEA country, according to the information recorded in THETIS-MRV, the company should:

• first, ensure that all the ships under its responsibility falling within ETS scope are assigned to its company account in THETIS-MRV
• only after, the company should send a request to the THETIS-MRV Helpdesk to be assigned to the administering authority of the EU Member State where the first port of call took place.

No. To ensure stability, once assigned to an EU Member State, a shipping company remains assigned to that Member State regardless of subsequent changes in the shipping company’s activities or changes in registration, until those variations are reflected in an updated attribution list (Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2024/411). The list will be updated every two years (or four years for non-EEA companies that were associated based on their historical ports of call in the last four monitoring years).

The attribution list was based on the best available information recorded by companies in the THETIS-MRV system and, as far as ports of call are concerned, as reported in SafeSeaNet.

Any requests for changes in the attribution to Member States will be disregarded.

Although companies will remain assigned to the Member State attributed to them until the release of an updated list, please note that ships may be transferred between companies, following the sale/purchase of a ship or simply a change of responsibility due to MRV and ETS compliance obligations, e.g. between a shipowner and an ISM company. Such cases will qualify as a change of company within the MRV Regulation. This means that the new company should submit a revised monitoring plan, while the previous one should submit a partial emissions report (in case the change of company occurs during a reporting period).

Ships’ emissions will be verified by verifiers accredited by EU Member States (i.e. National Accreditation Bodies). Shipping companies will be able to select any duly accredited verifier for each of their ships, irrespective of the ship's flag or the place where the company is based and where the accredited verifier is based. In principle, a company may have different verifiers for each of their ships, as well as different verifiers verifying the ship’s emissions report and the report at company level.

Shipping companies that fail to surrender allowances are liable to an excess emissions penalty of EUR 100 (corrected for inflation) per tonne of CO2 equivalent and are still liable for the surrender of the required allowances. The names of the penalized companies are also disclosed to the public.

EU Member States must set out penalties that are effective, proportionate, and dissuasive.

Furthermore, in case a shipping company has failed to comply with surrendering its obligations for two or more consecutive reporting periods, and where other enforcement measures have failed to ensure compliance, the competent authority of the EU Member State of the port of entry may, after giving the opportunity to the company concerned to submit its observations, issue an expulsion order. In practice, this means that every EU Member State is required to refuse entry to the ships under the responsibility of the shipping company concerned into any of its ports, until the company fulfils its surrendering obligations. Where a ship flies the flag of an EU Member State and enters or is found in one of its ports, the concerned EU Member State will, after giving the opportunity to the concerned company to submit its observations, detain the ship until the company fulfils its obligations.

Please refer to the Quick Guide for installation operators:
https://climate.ec.europa.eu/document/download/535fc76c-4466-4568-a88a-e205a5ee0d6f_en?filename=quick_guide_operators_en.pdf

Further information can be found on the following website:Monitoring, reporting and verification of EU ETS emissions - European Commission (europa.eu)

The EDM application EZG records and reports on greenhouse gas emissions from stationary systems, as well as emissions and tonne-kilometers from aviation activities in accordance with the Emissions Certificates Act 2011 (EZG 2011) - EDM (Elektronic Datamanagement):
EDM Portal - EZG (EU ETS) (umweltbundesamt.at)(in german, please use a translation tool)

For further questions please contact the EDM-Helpdesk:
Edm-helpdesk@umweltbundesamt.at

The EDM Helpdesk (EDM Portal - Helpdesk) can be reached by telephone on (+43 1) 31 304 / 8000 at the following times.

1 January to 30 April:
Monday - Thursday 08:00 - 16:00 hrs.
Friday 08:00 - 14:00

1 May to 31 December:
Monday - Friday 08:00 - 14:00 hrs.

A guideline for adding/replacing authorised representatives can be found here:

A guideline for adding/replacing authorised representatives 

We request the following documents:

1. Proof of identity (Copy of a valid passport, valid identity card or a valid identification document recognized under national law certified by a notary public. For documents without an expiry date, the date of issue of the document must not be more than 10 years ago.)

2. Evidence to support the address of the permanent residence (confirmation of residence registration: either the original or an electronic document carrying the official signature or a copy certified by a notary public). If the main residence is in Austria and the data is available in the central residence register it is not necessary to submit a proof.

3. Criminal record certificate for the last 5 years (either the original or an electronic document carrying the official signature or a copy certified by a notary public)

Find more information here: www.emissionshandelsregister.at/en/unionregistry/accounts/updatingaccountdata/changingar

In case you still have access to your former mobile device or the phone number incorporated in the EU Login, please proceed with the following steps for the required change:

1.            Installation of the ‘EU Login Mobile’ App
on a compatible mobile device (excluding Huawei Models past 16.05.2019).Technical requirements: functioning camera, screen lock activated, permissions requested must be allowed / activated.

2.            Addition of the mobile device in the EU Login Account:
https://ecas.ec.europa.eu/cas/login

Login with verification method 'Mobile Phone + SMS'.

At the right corner (rack-wheel next to your name) click on ‚my account/ manage my mobile devices / add a mobile device / enter name of the mobile device and 4-digit Pin Code (required once for initialization)‘.

3.            Linking the EU Login Mobile App with the EU Login Account (=INITALIZE):
Scan of the QR Code by selecting ‘Initialize’ within the app, enter the 4-digit Pin Code (as defined in step 2). If applicable: Confirm the push notification.

4.            Entry to the union registry:
Login into the union registry using our website (see signature) selecting the verification method ‚EU Login Mobile App QR Code‘.

Confirm the information request by selecting “Device Registration” and confirm.

A task will be generated for changing your personal information, which has to be confirmed by the Austrian Emissions Registry as national administrator.

Please sent an informal e-mail in which you confirm the last 8 digits of the newly created MUDI and the task number you have just created. Your new MUDI can be checked in the EU-Login Mobile App under 'Settings-About this app'.

If the mobile device is lost, the 'PANIC button' must be selected in the EU login account. In this case, please inform the Austrian Emissions Trading Registry in advance.

All transfers to accounts indicated on the trusted account list are executed immediately if they are proposed for execution between 10:00 and 16:00 CET on working days. If such a transfer is proposed for execution before 10:00 CET it is executed at 10.00 CET on the same working day. If a transfer is proposed for execution after 16:00 CET, it is executed on the following working day at 10:00 CET.

Transfers to accounts not indicated on the trusted account list are subject to a delay and are executed at the following times:

• Transactions proposed for execution (initiated and approved) before 12:00 CET of a working day are executed at 12.00 CET of the following working day.
• Transactions proposed for execution (initiated and approved) after 12:00 CET of a working day are executed at 12.00 CET of the second working day following the day of proposal for execution.

The free allowances in the Austrian part of the Union Registry are allocated at the in June every year.

All-important dates can be found here:

Dates (emissionshandelsregister.at)

The transaction mentioned is an allocation that took place based on one of the most recent updates to the national allocation table and the adjustments to the allocation of free emission certificates decided therein. Please check all notifications that have been sent to you by the ministry. If you are entitled to a higher number of certificates compared to the basic allocation after a change, the difference was allocated to you after the objection period for the corresponding year.

Too many allowances surrendered are offset against the surrender obligation for the next year.

Certificates can be acquired in different ways:

• Directly from the participants of the EU-ETS EUROPA - Environment - Kyoto Protocol - European Union Transaction Log. Use the filters for the desired selection of the respective account type.
• From intermediaries
• On the stock exchange (trading of emission certificates)
• Participation in the auctions of emission allowances (Link to EEX ; The European Energy Exchange (EEX) was appointed by the European Commission as common auction platform for the auctioning of allowances.)

For more information click here: MiFID II (emissionshandelsregister.at)

The current excel for the EDM emissions submission can be found on the website of the BMK through the following link (in german, please use a translation tool):
Formulare (bmk.gv.at)

A guide for the transmission is described within the manual (in german, please use a translation tool): 
Benutzerhandbuch für den EDM-Benutzerbereich

The user manual for aircraft operators can be found here:
Benutzerhandbuch für den EDM-Benutzerbereich

Additional information can be found on the website of the EDM (Elektronic Datamanagement):
EDM Portal - EZG (EU ETS)

For further questions please contact the EDM-Helpdesk:
Edm-helpdesk@umweltbundesamt.at

The EDM Helpdesk (EDM Portal - Helpdesk) can be reached by telephone on (+43 1) 31 304 / 8000 at the following times.

1 January to 30 April:
Monday - Thursday 08:00 - 16:00 hrs.
Friday 08:00 - 14:00 hrs.

1 May to 31 December:
Monday - Friday 08:00 - 14:00 hrs.