Unit types

Most common unit types

  • Allowances used in the EU-ETS ; can only be managed on accounts with an account number starting with EU-100-...

    EUA General allowance Allowances created pursuant to Directive 2003/87/EC, with the exception of Article 3c §2.
    EUAA Aviation allowance Allowances created pursuant to Article 3c §2 of Directive 2003/87/EC.
    CHU Swiss General allowance Swiss equivalent of a General Allowance ; these allowances can be used for compliance under the EU-ETS by operators and aircraft operators.
    CHUA Swiss Aviation allowance Swiss equivalent of an Aviation Allowance ; these allowances can be used for compliance under the EU-ETS by operators (only for Phase IV compliance) and aircraft operators.
    Until April 30, 2021 operators can only use EUA (or CHU) for their compliance obligations under the EU-ETS, whilst aircraft operators can use EUAA (or CHUA) in addition.
    As from May 1, 2021 onwards both operators and aircraft operators can use EUA (or CHU) as well as EUAA (or CHUA) for their Phase IV (2021-2030) compliance obligations under the EU-ETS.
  • KYOTO UNITS

    • International credits used in emissions trading under the Kyoto Protocol ; for the moment CERs and ERUs can be managed both on EU-100-... (EU-ETS) and BE-121-... (Kyoto) accounts.

      CER Certified Emission Reduction Unit Via CDM emission-reduction projects in countries that do not have obligations under the Kyoto Protocol, certified emission reduction (CER) units can be earned. These units can be exchanged for allowances by operators and aircraft operators up to a certain limit.
      Based upon the project identifier you can retrieve detailed information on the origin of the CERs via the CDM website of the UNFCCC (http://cdm.unfccc.int/Projects/projsearch.html). The project identifier or project number of a CER is displayed in the registry at the account balance page.
      Important: Some CERs can no longer be used under the EU-ETS! (ineligible CERs)
      ERU Emission Reduction Unit A unit converted from an AAU or RMU based on a Joint Implementation (JI) project in countries that have obligations under the Kyoto protocol. These units can be exchanged for allowances by operators and aircraft operators up to a certain limit.
      Important: Some ERUs can no longer be used under the EU-ETS! (ineligible ERUs)
      Until April 30, 2021 CERs and ERUs can be exchanged in the EU-ETS for EUAs/EUAAs within certain limitations.
      From 1 May 2021, incoming transactions with CERs / ERUs to EU accounts (EU-100-...-0-..) are no longer possible.
      Any CERs / ERUs that are on the EU accounts (EU-100-...-0-..) can still be held there until July 1, 2023.
    • AAU Assigned Amount Unit Units allocated to Kyoto parties (ex. Belgium) for each commitment period.
      lCER Long-term Certified Emission Reduction Unit These units are issued for an afforestation or reforestation project activity under the clean development mechanism (CDM). They expire at the end of the emission reduction crediting period of the afforestation or reforestation project activity for which they were issued.
      tCER Temporary Certified Emission Reduction Unit These units are issued for an afforestation or reforestation project activity under the clean development mechanism (CDM). They expire at the end of the Kyoto Protocol commitment period following the one during which they were issued.
      RMU Removal Unit Units allocated to Kyoto parties for LULUCF activities. LULUCF stands for Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry.

    • Each of the units above represent the equivalent of one ton CO2.

    User accounts in the EU-ETS (EU-100-...) can only hold units that can be used within the EU-ETS : EUA, CHU, EUAA, CHUA, eligible CER and eligible ERU (also see further).

    Eligibility of international credits (CERs and ERUs)

    All international credits (CERs and ERUs) that can no longer be held in the EU-ETS are marked "ineligible" in the registry. These credits can no longer be received on or traded with EU accounts (EU-100-...-0..), but only on Kyoto accounts beginning with a country code (not EU), for example BE-121-...-0-.. .

    CERs and ERUs can only be exchanged until April 30, 2021 in the EU-ETS for EUAs/EUAAs and this only within certain limitations.
    With any purchase of international credits (CERs or ERUs) with the aim to exchange them, you should require that only credits are provided which are authorized to be used within the EU-ETS and that those units are delivered to your EU account.

    From 1 May 2021, incoming transactions with CERs / ERUs to EU accounts (EU-100-...-0-..) are no longer possible.

    Any CERs / ERUs that are on the EU accounts (EU-100-...-0-..) can still be held there until July 1, 2023.

    More information and frequently asked questions on the eligibility of international credits can be found on the website of the European Commission, DG Clima: https://ec.europa.eu/clima/policies/ets/registry_en#tab-0-2.

    ISIN codes for emission units

    All emission unit types got a different International Securities Identification Number (ISIN-number) as they have become tradable financial assets. The structure of ISIN numbers is defined in ISO 6166 and these numbers serve for uniform identification at trading and settlement.

    More information is available at https://ec.europa.eu/clima/policies/ets/oversight/isin_en and (shortly) through the registry at the balance tab of your account after login...

     

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