Rome's Offensive in Brussels: Call to Suspend ETS and Fight for Competitiveness

Italy has intensified its diplomatic efforts in Brussels, aiming for a radical revision of the Community's climate policy. Minister of Enterprise Adolfo Urso has formulated a demand to halt the ETS mechanism until a full review is conducted. According to the Italian administration, the current functioning of the permit market favors financial speculation instead of stimulating real technological transformation. While the Italian government under Giorgia Meloni seeks to revise ETS costs, this demand has not gained official support from the French government in the form of a call to suspend the system. France places greater emphasis on reforms supporting industrial competitiveness without dismantling key climate tools. Meanwhile, Sweden, represented by Minister Ebba Busch, remains skeptical of deep changes, suggesting only minor operational adjustments. Intra-EU tensions coincide with new challenges in trade relations with the USA. Donald Trump is maintaining his tariff rhetoric, forcing Europe to seek new negotiation strategies, including a potential rapprochement with China in selected sectors. The European Commission is focused on implementing plans to lower energy prices and funds for industrial decarbonization, but the creation of a 20-billion-euro 'Eastinvest' fund has not been announced. Support for regions is provided through existing cohesion mechanisms and transformation funds. At the same time, Italian exports, despite ranking fourth globally in 2025, face structural problems; nearly half of its companies base their sales solely on one foreign market, making them extremely vulnerable to sudden changes in tariff regulations. The European Green Deal, launched in 2019, set the ambitious goal of achieving EU climate neutrality by 2050, which forced a deep reform of economic instruments such as the ETS. In commodity markets, a significant rebound in the price of blue fuel was recorded. Natural gas on the Amsterdam exchange became 3.7% more expensive, reaching a level of 32.2 euros per megawatt-hour. This increase in energy costs, combined with the restrictive regulations of the Green Deal, raises justified concerns about the profitability of energy-intensive sectors. Despite these difficulties, the Italian construction market shows signs of resilience, an effect of implementing railway projects financed by PNRR funds. The Milan stock exchange reacted to these reports with moderate optimism, where indices remained above the reference level, driven by gains in Nexi and Stellantis shares, alongside weakness in Telecom Italia securities.