A ‘deal’ could be materialising between the Washington and Brussels ahead of the 1 June deadline for US tariffs on steel and aluminium to kick in. It is not yet clear whether all EU member states would approve the arrangements, or if it would hold within the US administration. …
Energy & Environment
EU trashes Chinese standards on foreign waste
China must give exporters more time to adjust to 11 new environmental protection control standards for imported solid waste as raw materials, the EU says. Governments got just 30 days to comment on the proposed changes, which were to enter into force on 1 March, and exporters had only 14 …
Mercosur in German NGO limelight
The EU is in the final stages of free trade negotiations with the South American bloc Mercosur. It is readying for the adoption of a new trade agreement with Japan and Vietnam. Anti trade agreement campaign groups have recently stepped up their activities to fight these agreements. A joint …
WTO: EU wants US to explain ‘safeguard’ on solar imports
The US must explain its decision to slap steep ‘safeguard’ tariffs on foreign solar cells and panels, says the EU, noting that Germany is a major exporter of the goods. In a communication to the World Trade Organization dated yesterday, the EU said that, “having a substantial interest as …
TTIP and energy security: do Europeans actually want US LNG?
When TTIP talks were launched in 2013, Europeans were keen to tap into the United States oil and gas bonanza resulting from the country’s shale revolution to help reduce prices and shake off the continent’s too-heavy reliance on Russian hydrocarbons. But now US shale gas is arrriving in Europe, regardless of …
COMMENT: Towards a coherent system of global energy trade and investment rules
It is time to reassess the relationship between the WTO and Energy Charter Treaty, writes Anna Marhold.
EU African EPAs in limbo
The EU’s Economic Partnership Agreements – or EPAs – with sub-Saharan countries inked a few years ago are not getting off the ground as African governments don’t like their EU-inspired rules on raw materials policies. African countries are also currently prioritising continent-wide regional integration. By Iana Dreyer.
Injecting energy into the agenda of trade negotiators
Barriers to trade and investment in energy goods and services, long neglected, start being addressed by trade negotiators in the World Trade Organisation and outside of it. The process of integrating the energy dimension to trade policy is however still in its infancy. A recent World Energy Council report aims …
INTERVIEW: End of US crude oil export ban – consequences for TTIP and the climate
Late 2015, the United States unexpectedly liberalised its exports of crude oil, a move that infuriated climate activists, but pleased Europeans concerned about the continent’s energy security, and raised EU hopes an energy chapter in ongoing TTIP negotiations could become a reality. In an exclusive interview with Borderlex, Carnegie’s David Livingston …
Environmental Goods Agreement : high hopes for a small deal
A ‘green goods’ trade deal under negotiation among a subset of World Trade Organization members has good chances of materialising by December this year. But the process of determining which good makes it into the list of liberalised goods is highly politicised. EGA will not likely give a significant boost to …
