Study trip to Germany 2019: Learning About the International Experience of the Emissions Trading System

Considering the forthcoming Emissions Trading System (ETS) Pilot Program, and in accordance with the provisions of the Official Journal of the Federation, the project “Preparation of an Emissions Trading System in Mexico” (ETS) of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH (German Cooperation for Sustainable Development) will organize a study trip to Germany for Mexican representatives from the public and private sector and academia.

The GIZ ETS project, on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU), is responsible for carrying out different support activities for the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT) regarding the design and implementation of an Emissions Trading System in Mexico. In this context, a study trip to Germany in 2018 was organized, focusing on representatives of the private sector. The trip helped participants to deepen their knowledge on the topic through discussions with experts, site visits and peer-to-peer interviews with their German counterparts.

This year, in the second edition of the trip, it is planned to repeat the experience with representatives from different sectors (public, private and academy). The objectives of the trip are to bring the representatives of different sectors closer to the European experience of implementing the EU ETS and to promote direct interaction with the main actors in charge of the ETS in Europe, who will share their point of view on learning, the challenges and areas of opportunity that the implementation of the ETS has entailed. With this role in mind, a visit to institutions such as the BMU, Mercator and the German Authority for Emission Allowance Trade (DEHSt) in Berlin, the office of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Bonn, and a site visit to an industrial plant regulated by the system are intended.

Some of the topics that will  be addressed during the trip are: the basic design elements of the ETS, the establishment of the EU ETS cap, the method of assigning emission rights, the system for Monitoring, Reporting and Verification of emissions, lessons learned from the EU ETS, the use of compensation credits and other relevant aspects of international carbon markets under the Paris Agreement.

The trip will take place from October 28 to November 1, 2019 and will be attended by experts from Adelphi, FutureCamp, representatives of the BMU and the DEHSt.