Database Specific
Database Specific Abstract AbstractCompanion dataset to the Net Effective Carbon Rates working paper and the OECD Series on Carbon Pricing and Energy Taxation.
The "Pricing Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Turning Climate Targets into Climate Action" report tracks how explicit carbon prices, energy taxes and subsidies – an important subset of climate policy instruments that directly alter the cost of emitting GHG or change electricity prices – have evolved between 2018 and 2021. Reforming these instruments could help to meet climate targets, lead to cleaner air and water, and improve public finances. The report covers 71 countries, which together account for approximately 80% of global GHG emissions and energy use. Explicit carbon prices, energy taxes and subsidies are detailed by country, sector, product and instrument. The use of a common methodology ensures comparability across countries. Summary indicators facilitate cross country comparisons and allow policy makers and the public to keep track of progress made and identify opportunities for reform.
Please cite as OECD (2022), Pricing Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Turning Climate Targets into Climate Action, OECD Series on Carbon Pricing and Energy Taxation, OECD Publishing, Paris
Source Source Contact person/organisation Contact person/organisationOECD, CTP/TPS Tax and Environment Unit ctp.contact@oecd.org
Date last input received Date last input receivedThe data was received and processed in Q1 of 2022.
Data source(s) used Data source(s) usedEnergy use data was adapted from International Energy Agency (IEA) 2020, World Energy Statistics and Balances.
GHG are the sum of fossil-fuel related CO2 calculated based on energy use data for 2018 from IEA (2020), World Energy Statistics and Balances, and other GHGs from Climate Watch (2020), GHG Emissions (CAIT dataset), World Resources Institute.
ETS coverage estimates are based on the OECD’s (2021), Effective Carbon Rates 2021, with adjustments to account for recent coverage changes
Fossil fuel subsidy and electricity subsidiy estimates are based on the Inventory of Fossil Fuel Support where available and original research for the other countries (OECD, Forthcoming), Net Effective Carbon Rates. Due to data limitations, 2021 fossil fuel subsidy estimates are based on data for 2020.
Emission permit prices from Energy Exchanges, ETS registries and the ICAP Carbon Price Viewer.
IPCC emission factors
Tax and where necessary subsidy data was collected via publicly available official sources and consultation with government officials and independent experts who were asked to review and refine the data.
Data Characteristics Data Characteristics Base period Base periodTax rates and permit prices refer to the same base year. Due to data limitations, 2021 fossil fuel subsidy estimates are based on data for 2020. Effective tax rates for 2018 and 2021 are both mapped to 2018 energy use and emissions data, which facilitates comparisons between the two points in time, as changes in average rates are not affected by changes in the composition of energy use and GHG emissions. At the time of data collection, the latest available energy use, emissions, and ETS coverage data available for all countries was from 2018, which was used as a proxy for the 2021 base.
Contact person Contact person Date last updated Date last updated5/21/2022
Population & Scope Population & Scope Geographic coverage Geographic coverageOECD: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye, United Kingdom and United States.
Non-OECD: Argentina, Bangladesh, Brazil, Burkina Faso, China, Côte d'Ivoire, Republic of Cyprus, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Madagascar, Malaysia, Morocco, Nigeria, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Russia, Rwanda, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Uganda, Ukraine, Uruguay.
Other coverage Other coverageThe database focuses on pricing instruments that specifically apply to a base that is directly proportional to energy use or GHG emissions. It therefore excludes taxes and fees that are only partially correlated with energy use or GHG emissions. Common examples of policy instruments that fall outside the scope of the database include vehicle purchase taxes, registration or circulation taxes, and taxes that are directly levied on non-GHG emissions, such as the Danish tax on SOx. Some countries also apply production taxes on the extraction or exploitation of energy resources (e.g., severance taxes on oil extraction). Since these supply-side measures are not directly linked to domestic energy use or emissions, the database does not cover them either. Similarly, the database does not include value added taxes (VAT) or sales taxes. As VAT in principle applies equally to a wide range of goods, they do not change the relative prices of products and services (i.e. they do not make carbon-intensive goods and services more expensive than cleaner alternatives).
Product coverage Product coverageCoal and other solid fossil fuels, Fuel oil, Diesel, Kerosene, Gasoline, LPG, Natural gas, Other fossil fuels and non-renewable waste, Biofuels (as memo item where appicable), Hydro, Solar, wind, ocean, Geothermal, Nuclear, Other electricity and heating sources and where applicable Other GHG (excl. LUCF)
Sector coverage Sector coverageRoad transport, off-road transport, buildings, industry, electricity, agriculture & fisheries and where applicable Other GHG (excl. LUCF).
Concepts & Classifications Concepts & Classifications Key statistical concept Key statistical conceptThe revenue forgone indicator estimates the fiscal revenue that is forgone for not pricing carbon emissions at a given benchmark. This indicator can be used to approximate fossil fuel support provided by countries.
Main estimates are for fossil fuel CO2 emissions. Memo estimates that include the revenue potential from reforming the pricing of other GHG or biofuels have also been calculated. Unlike the related revenue potential indicator, revenue forgone does not account for behavioural responses to higher prices.
EUR 60 per tonne of CO2 is a midpoint estimate for carbon costs in 2020, and a low-end estimate for 2030. Pricing all emissions at least at EUR 60 in 2020 shows that a country is on a good track to reach the goals of the Paris Agreement to decarbonise by mid-century economically. EUR 30 is a historic low-end estimate for carbon costs, and EUR 120 is a midrange estimate for carbon costs in 2030.
Subsidy estimates are for 2020 and are based on data on relevant budgetary transfers from the Inventory of Fossil Fuel Support where available and original research for the other countries.
Other manipulations Other manipulationsFor comparisons across time and countries in real prices, OECD inflation and exchange rate data are used. Where OECD exchange rate period averages were not available, they were supplemented using IMF International Financial Statistics. Inflation gaps were supplemented using the World Bank’s World Development Indicators Consumer Prices.
Other Aspects Other Aspects Other comments Other commentsIn this vintage of the dataset, the Net ECR when expressed in real EUR for a given unit of CO2-equivalent can decrease (increase) between 2018 and 2021 for several reasons:
The government reduced (increased) tax rates or introduced (abolished) exemptions, rate reductions or refunds that benefit the emitter. Fuel or carbon taxes have been abolished (introduced). Tax rates were not indexed to inflation and have therefore declined in real terms ceteris paribus
Emission Trading Scheme (ETS) permit prices were lower (higher) in real terms, ETS coverage has decreased (increased) or an ETS has been abolished (introduced).
Fossil fuel subsidies were higher (lower) in real terms.
The country used a currency other than EUR which has depreciated against the EUR over time.
Note that this vintage of the dataset keeps energy use and emissions constant. Changes over time are therefore not due to:
The calorific value of the fuel being taxed has changed, but the tax rate that is levied on a volumetric basis (such as litres) has remained the same.
There were changes in the composition of the energy mix away from sources with a high Net ECR to those with a lower Net ECR, which could affect the average Net ECR.
Recommended uses and limitations Recommended uses and limitationsThe Net ECR captures carbon price signals (resulting from taxes and emissions trading systems, as well as fossil fuel subsidies), whereas the Net EER measures energy price signals (resulting from the Net ECR components plus electricity taxes and subsidies).
Companion dataset to the Net Effective Carbon Rates working paper and the OECD Series on Carbon Pricing and Energy Taxation.
The "Pricing Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Turning Climate Targets into Climate Action" report tracks how explicit carbon prices, energy taxes and subsidies – an important subset of climate policy instruments that directly alter the cost of emitting GHG or change electricity prices – have evolved between 2018 and 2021. Reforming these instruments could help to meet climate targets, lead to cleaner air and water, and improve public finances. The report covers 71 countries, which together account for approximately 80% of global GHG emissions and energy use. Explicit carbon prices, energy taxes and subsidies are detailed by country, sector, product and instrument. The use of a common methodology ensures comparability across countries. Summary indicators facilitate cross country comparisons and allow policy makers and the public to keep track of progress made and identify opportunities for reform.
Please cite as OECD (2022), Pricing Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Turning Climate Targets into Climate Action, OECD Series on Carbon Pricing and Energy Taxation, OECD Publishing, Paris
OECD, CTP/TPS Tax and Environment Unit ctp.contact@oecd.org
Energy use data was adapted from International Energy Agency (IEA) 2020, World Energy Statistics and Balances.
GHG are the sum of fossil-fuel related CO2 calculated based on energy use data for 2018 from IEA (2020), World Energy Statistics and Balances, and other GHGs from Climate Watch (2020), GHG Emissions (CAIT dataset), World Resources Institute.
ETS coverage estimates are based on the OECD’s (2021), Effective Carbon Rates 2021, with adjustments to account for recent coverage changes
Fossil fuel subsidy and electricity subsidiy estimates are based on the Inventory of Fossil Fuel Support where available and original research for the other countries (OECD, Forthcoming), Net Effective Carbon Rates. Due to data limitations, 2021 fossil fuel subsidy estimates are based on data for 2020.
Emission permit prices from Energy Exchanges, ETS registries and the ICAP Carbon Price Viewer.
IPCC emission factors
Tax and where necessary subsidy data was collected via publicly available official sources and consultation with government officials and independent experts who were asked to review and refine the data.
The data was received and processed in Q1 of 2022.
Tax rates and permit prices refer to the same base year. Due to data limitations, 2021 fossil fuel subsidy estimates are based on data for 2020. Effective tax rates for 2018 and 2021 are both mapped to 2018 energy use and emissions data, which facilitates comparisons between the two points in time, as changes in average rates are not affected by changes in the composition of energy use and GHG emissions. At the time of data collection, the latest available energy use, emissions, and ETS coverage data available for all countries was from 2018, which was used as a proxy for the 2021 base.
5/21/2022
OECD: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Türkiye, United Kingdom and United States.
Non-OECD: Argentina, Bangladesh, Brazil, Burkina Faso, China, Côte d'Ivoire, Republic of Cyprus, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Madagascar, Malaysia, Morocco, Nigeria, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Russia, Rwanda, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Uganda, Ukraine, Uruguay.
Road transport, off-road transport, buildings, industry, electricity, agriculture & fisheries and where applicable Other GHG (excl. LUCF).
Coal and other solid fossil fuels, Fuel oil, Diesel, Kerosene, Gasoline, LPG, Natural gas, Other fossil fuels and non-renewable waste, Biofuels (as memo item where appicable), Hydro, Solar, wind, ocean, Geothermal, Nuclear, Other electricity and heating sources and where applicable Other GHG (excl. LUCF)
The database focuses on pricing instruments that specifically apply to a base that is directly proportional to energy use or GHG emissions. It therefore excludes taxes and fees that are only partially correlated with energy use or GHG emissions. Common examples of policy instruments that fall outside the scope of the database include vehicle purchase taxes, registration or circulation taxes, and taxes that are directly levied on non-GHG emissions, such as the Danish tax on SOx. Some countries also apply production taxes on the extraction or exploitation of energy resources (e.g., severance taxes on oil extraction). Since these supply-side measures are not directly linked to domestic energy use or emissions, the database does not cover them either. Similarly, the database does not include value added taxes (VAT) or sales taxes. As VAT in principle applies equally to a wide range of goods, they do not change the relative prices of products and services (i.e. they do not make carbon-intensive goods and services more expensive than cleaner alternatives).
The revenue forgone indicator estimates the fiscal revenue that is forgone for not pricing carbon emissions at a given benchmark. This indicator can be used to approximate fossil fuel support provided by countries.
Main estimates are for fossil fuel CO2 emissions. Memo estimates that include the revenue potential from reforming the pricing of other GHG or biofuels have also been calculated. Unlike the related revenue potential indicator, revenue forgone does not account for behavioural responses to higher prices.
EUR 60 per tonne of CO2 is a midpoint estimate for carbon costs in 2020, and a low-end estimate for 2030. Pricing all emissions at least at EUR 60 in 2020 shows that a country is on a good track to reach the goals of the Paris Agreement to decarbonise by mid-century economically. EUR 30 is a historic low-end estimate for carbon costs, and EUR 120 is a midrange estimate for carbon costs in 2030.
Subsidy estimates are for 2020 and are based on data on relevant budgetary transfers from the Inventory of Fossil Fuel Support where available and original research for the other countries.
For comparisons across time and countries in real prices, OECD inflation and exchange rate data are used. Where OECD exchange rate period averages were not available, they were supplemented using IMF International Financial Statistics. Inflation gaps were supplemented using the World Bank’s World Development Indicators Consumer Prices.
The Net ECR captures carbon price signals (resulting from taxes and emissions trading systems, as well as fossil fuel subsidies), whereas the Net EER measures energy price signals (resulting from the Net ECR components plus electricity taxes and subsidies).
In this vintage of the dataset, the Net ECR when expressed in real EUR for a given unit of CO2-equivalent can decrease (increase) between 2018 and 2021 for several reasons:
The government reduced (increased) tax rates or introduced (abolished) exemptions, rate reductions or refunds that benefit the emitter. Fuel or carbon taxes have been abolished (introduced). Tax rates were not indexed to inflation and have therefore declined in real terms ceteris paribus
Emission Trading Scheme (ETS) permit prices were lower (higher) in real terms, ETS coverage has decreased (increased) or an ETS has been abolished (introduced).
Fossil fuel subsidies were higher (lower) in real terms.
The country used a currency other than EUR which has depreciated against the EUR over time.
Note that this vintage of the dataset keeps energy use and emissions constant. Changes over time are therefore not due to:
The calorific value of the fuel being taxed has changed, but the tax rate that is levied on a volumetric basis (such as litres) has remained the same.
There were changes in the composition of the energy mix away from sources with a high Net ECR to those with a lower Net ECR, which could affect the average Net ECR.