Policy areas

Energy and Climate Change

The UK was the first major economy to set a target to end its contribution to global warming, before 2050. This target and subsequent interim targets – a 68% reduction by 2030 and 78% reduction by 2035 – have supercharged climate policy development in the UK. 

The UK chemical industry faces challenges due to high and rising energy costs, impacting its international competitiveness. Despite success in deploying renewable electricity, the industry now faces higher prices compared to global competitors due to pass-through costs including carbon pricing, renewable power subsidies, and network capacity increases. The sector relies on lower gas prices for competitiveness, but fears rising costs if asked to pay for decarbonising the heat supply like the electricity grid.

The CIA collaborates with members, government, and regulators to insulate the industry from energy transition costs while transitioning to a net-zero energy system. To mitigate emissions, the industry plans fuel-switching to hydrogen or electricity and retrofitting carbon capture equipment. CIA works to ensure supportive policies for these investments and to prevent net-zero transition costs from harming manufacturers.

Position Statements

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Dynamic allocation in the UK Emissions Trading Scheme

2025-08-01T09:03:00+01:00

Between April and June of this year, the UK Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) Authority carried out a baseline data collection exercise to gather historic activity level data from UK ETS participant sites, for the period 2019-2023. The average activity level during this baseline period will be used to set the rate of free allocation a site will receive in the second free allocation period (2027-2030).

Be part of it

Members are invited to get involved with our various energy and climate change strategy groups, networks and issue teams, which include: Energy and Climate Change Policy Network,  Industrial Emissions Policy Issue Team,  Sustainability Strategy Group , Environment Network. 

For further information, or to express an interest in joining, please contact our team Nishma Patel at PatelN@cia.org.uk or Rich Woolley at WoolleyR@cia.org.uk

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