ICF Consulting Appointed as Advisor to the Government of Ireland to Determine Competitive Implications of EU Emissions Trading Scheme

LONDON, UK, October 1, 2003 – The Government of Ireland has appointed a team led by ICF Consulting to help determine the quantity of European Union (EU) greenhouse gas emission allowances to be allocated to Irish companies required to participate in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme. Emissions trading is scheduled to begin on January 1, 2005. The consultants were selected by a steering committee comprised of officials from six Irish government agencies led by the Department of the Environment, Heritage, and Local Government. ICF Consulting is supported by Dublin-based consultancy Byrne Ó Cléirigh.

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"We are honoured to be appointed as advisors on such a critical study that will help assess the competitive implications of the potential options that the Irish Government can employ to implement the EU directive on Emissions Trading," says Abyd Karmali, ICF Consulting's Director of European Climate Change Services. "The EU Emissions Trading Scheme will offer Irish companies an excellent opportunity to meet their emission reduction targets with maximum flexibility by providing them the option to either reduce emissions on site or purchase allowances from a pan-European market."

Mr. Karmali continued, "ICF Consulting's role is to help the Irish Government assess the relative opportunities and costs faced by companies included in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, and those outside the scheme subject to other policies. This assessment will help achieve a balance between economic efficiency and equity among the different sectors of the economy. A key part of our analysis also will be to assess the relative competitive implications faced by different sectors of the Irish economy. From our experience in some of the pioneering emissions trading markets, such as the sulphur dioxide market in the United States and from our work over the past few years advising public and private sector clients across the EU, it is clear that the competitive landscape of many product markets will change. These commercial implications and the societal tradeoffs must be made explicit to help inform policy decisions."

"Getting the total quantity of national emissions allocated to the emissions trading sector right is key to ensuring the environmental effectives of the scheme," says Mr. Martin Cullen, Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. "I am satisfied that the selected consortium has the knowledge and expertise to deliver a recommendation which adequately integrates national economic and social priorities."