The government has partially unfrozen the carbon tax

The government has decided to partially unfreeze the carbon tax applied to fuels, according to a decree published this Friday in Diário da República.

“[…] The government is resuming the gradual unfreezing of the update of the CO2 supplement, maintaining the partial suspension of this update compared to the value of 83,524 euros, which will apply in 2024,” says the diploma signed by the Minister for Financial Affairs. .

The diploma states that the additional rate for CO2 emissions is EUR 68.368/tonne CO2 and comes into force “on the next working day after its publication”, i.e. on Monday.

The executive justifies this decision with the aim of “resuming the objective of promoting green taxation and decarbonisation of energy” and “taking into account the recent evolution of fuel prices and the evolution of prices resulting from auctions of greenhouse gas emission licences”. In particular”, given that there is a “trend towards lower fuel prices and rising CO2 emission prices”.

The carbon tax was suspended in December 2022, during a period of rising fuel prices. The previous government began unfreezing it in May 2023, but interrupted it again in August.

In the published decree, the government recalls that the freeze “represents an exceptional measure to support families and companies in the face of the aforementioned extraordinary increase in energy prices, which, in accordance with the recommendations of the European Commission, should be gradually eliminated as far as the evolution of the energy market allows.”