The Transatlantic Petrochemical Trade is Undermining Europe’s Climate & Plastics Policies

This policy brief by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) argues that the increasing import of fracked natural gas liquids (NGLs)—specifically ethane and propane—from the United States to Europe is undermining the European Union's climate and plastics reduction goals. The document details the supply chain from US fracking basins to European petrochemical plants and contends that current EU regulations, such as the Emissions Trading System (ETS) and the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), contain loopholes that allow the plastics industry to offshore emissions and avoid carbon pricing.

• The European Union's reliance on fracked gas liquids from the United States for plastics production threatens its climate objectives by offshoring emissions and ignoring the high carbon intensity of the upstream supply chain.
• US steam cracking capacity for ethane increased from 26 million tons per year (tpy) in 2005 to 45 million tpy in 2021, with plans to add another 9.1 million tpy, driving a surge in exports to Europe.
• The production of NGLs shipped to Europe primarily originates from three US basins: the Permian (Texas and New Mexico), the Eagle Ford (Texas), and the Marcellus (West Virginia and Pennsylvania).
• The petrochemical supply chain involves significant greenhouse gas emissions at multiple stages, including methane venting and flaring during extraction, energy-intensive fractionation, and the high energy requirements for shipping and refrigerating ethane.
• Several European countries have banned or placed moratoria on fracking, including France, Bulgaria, The Netherlands, Germany, Ireland, the United Kingdom, and Spain, yet they continue to import fracked feedstocks from the US.
• The EU's Emissions Trading System (ETS) and Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) are criticized for failing to adequately regulate plastics; the ETS provides free allowances to the plastics sector, and the CBAM excludes plastics and petrochemicals from its scope.
• The document recommends that the EU Methane Regulation be expanded to cover the full supply chain, including imports, and that the EU, UK, and Norway halt the construction of new plastics production facilities.

APA

Center for International Environmental Law (2021). The Transatlantic Petrochemical Trade is Undermining Europe’s Climate & Plastics Policies. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/The-Transatlantic-Petrochemical-Trade-is-Undermining-Europes-Climate-Plastics-Policies.pdf

Chicago

Center for International Environmental Law. The Transatlantic Petrochemical Trade is Undermining Europe’s Climate & Plastics Policies. 2021. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/The-Transatlantic-Petrochemical-Trade-is-Undermining-Europes-Climate-Plastics-Policies.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Center for International Environmental Law |title=The Transatlantic Petrochemical Trade is Undermining Europe’s Climate & Plastics Policies |date=25 November 2021 |url=https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/The-Transatlantic-Petrochemical-Trade-is-Undermining-Europes-Climate-Plastics-Policies.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centerforinternationalenvironmentallaw2021transatlantic, author = {{Center for International Environmental Law}}, title = {{The Transatlantic Petrochemical Trade is Undermining Europe’s Climate \& Plastics Policies}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2021}, month = nov, url = {https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/The-Transatlantic-Petrochemical-Trade-is-Undermining-Europes-Climate-Plastics-Policies.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }