Skip to content
DRAFT OPINION (COM(2021)0563 – C90362/2021 – 2021/0213(CNS))

On the proposal for a Council directive restructuring the Union framework for the taxation of energy products and electricity (recast)

PECH-PA-775406

Committee on Fisheries · Rapporteur: Gabriel Mato

Official HTML ↗ PDF DOCX
✦ In shortFull text
✦ In short · AI summary of this text, generated 27 Sept 2026

Written by a language model from the full text only; every figure comes from the text. The paragraph links open the paragraph a statement rests on — check the text itself before relying on it.

The Committee on Fisheries gives its draft opinion on the Commission proposal to restructure EU taxation of energy products and electricity, asking to keep the fishing sector's fuel tax exemption. It proposes new recitals stating that a new fuel tax would put the EU fishing industry at a competitive disadvantage, cause unfair treatment between fleets and territories, raise consumer prices and lead to bankruptcies and job losses. It also proposes recitals on the sector's emission cuts, its decarbonisation limits, the need for a full impact assessment and income diversification through the EMFAF. It amends recitals so that fishing is excluded from waterborne navigation taxation, and adds a new Article 13a exempting fuel and on-board electricity for fishing vessels in Union waters. It further amends Article 15 and Article 16 to remove fishing from the taxed intra-EU waterborne navigation and to exempt fuel for fishing vessels on inland waterways.

Committee position. The Committee on Fisheries proposes to amend the Commission proposal so that fishing is excluded from the taxation of energy products and electricity, and that fuel for fishing vessels in Union waters and on inland waterways, and electricity produced on board, are exempted.

Key points

  1. The Commission proposal drops references to maintaining EU enterprises' international competitiveness and to international fuel de-taxation obligations, making the rationale purely environmental.
  2. Lifting fuel de-taxation for the EU fishing sector would create an uneven playing field with heavily subsidised or low-tax fleets, harming EU producers, particularly small-scale ones.
  3. The proposal would treat fleets unfairly, as large vessels can refuel cheaply on long trips, and would raise prices for consumers, especially for fresh products.
  4. In the long term it would encourage building larger vessels, which are generally more energy-efficient than small-scale ones.
  5. The fishing sector sees the proposal as unfair, having almost halved its greenhouse gas emissions since 1990 while aviation has boomed and shipping emissions remain very high.
  6. Fishing has limited scope to adopt green technologies because fishing capacity ceilings cannot be exceeded and new technologies need more space on board.
  7. A full impact assessment should be conducted before the proposal is discussed by co-legislators.
  8. A new recital would state that a fuel tax would put the EU fishing industry at a competitive disadvantage, cause unfair treatment between territories, raise consumer prices and lead to large-scale bankruptcies and job losses.
  9. New recitals would require emission cuts in all sectors while taking account of available alternatives, and note the fleet's energy consumption cut of more than 15 points in the last decade and its decarbonisation challenges.
  10. Recital 23 is amended to exclude fishing from taxed waterborne navigation, and Recital 24 to exclude fishing from extra-EU waterborne navigation.
  11. New recitals would allow exemptions or reductions for lack of harmonisation, loss of international competitiveness or social and environmental reasons, and would support fishers' income diversification through the EMFAF.
  12. A new Article 13a would require member states to exempt fuel for fishing vessels within Union waters and electricity produced on board, and Articles 15 and 16 would be amended to remove fishing from taxed navigation and exempt inland waterway fishing vessels.

Who is affected

  • EU fishing operators, especially small-scale ones, who would face higher costs and unfair competition under a fuel tax.
  • Final consumers, particularly of fresh fish products, who would pay higher prices.
  • Local fishing communities, which would face bankruptcies and job losses.
  • Member states, which would have to apply the exemptions for fishing vessels under conditions they lay down.

Figures and deadlines

  • The Union fishing fleet reduced its energy consumption by more than 15 points in the last decade.
  • The Union imports 60% of the fish it consumes.
  • The fishing sector has almost halved its greenhouse gas emissions since 1990.
  • Sustainable alternative fuels and electricity should be exempted from taxation for ten years.