Guidance

EU ETS: notify your regulator about changes to your operations

The types of changes to your operations that you need to tell your regulator about.

This guidance was withdrawn on

As of 1 May 2021 the UK is no longer part of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme. There is now a UK equivalent scheme, see the guidance from BEIS.

You should regularly check if your emissions permit or aviation emissions plan accurately reflects your current operations.

You must tell your regulator about any changes to your operations that would affect your emissions permit (including the monitoring plan) or your aviation emissions plan. These could include:

  • changes to your monitoring methodology
  • changes in capacity or activity levels
  • stopping operations
  • transferring ownership, merging or splitting
  • changes to the name on the Commission List

You have a general obligation to notify changes to your regulator by 31 December in the year in which the change was planned or took place. You notify changes using the Emissions Trading Scheme Workflow Automation Project.

For some types of changes you will need to notify your regulator within a fixed time period.

As a general guide:

  • permanent changes may mean you need to request a variation to your emissions permit or your aviation emissions plan
  • temporary changes may mean you need to submit a notification of change to your regulator

Changes could also affect your free allocation of allowances level, if applicable.

Your regulator may need to vary your permit or emission plans as a result of any changes.

The conditions in your emissions permit or aviation emissions plan specify the types of changes you need to notify and the timeframe for doing this. These guidance documents have more information:

EU ETS Phase III: guidance for installations

EU ETS Phase III: guidance for aircraft operators

Help

The European Commission has produced guidance for operators on EU ETS requirements:

The Monitoring and Reporting Regulation: general guidance for installations

The Monitoring and Reporting Regulation: general guidance for aircraft operators

Help with Union Registry queries

Email: etregistryhelp@environment-agency.gov.uk

For other EU ETS queries contact your regulator

Environment Agency

Installations email: ethelp@environment-agency.gov.uk

Aircraft operators email: etaviationhelp@environment-agency.gov.uk

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy - Offshore Petroleum Regulator for Environment and Decommissioning

Email: emt@beis.gov.uk

Scottish Environment Protection Agency

Email: emission.trading@sepa.org.uk

Natural Resources Wales

Email: ghghelp@naturalresourceswales.gov.uk

Northern Ireland - The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs

Email: emissions.trading@daera-ni.gov.uk

Updates to this page

Published 23 April 2014

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