EU carbon tax revenue triples in six years reaching €51 billion

Revenue from carbon dioxide related taxes across the European Union experienced a surge between 2017 and 2023, climbing from €15 billion to €51 billion.

According to Eurostat, these levies, which are strictly applied to the carbon content of fossil fuels, have become a significantly larger portion of the total energy tax landscape.

The share of these specific taxes within the broader category of energy taxation rose from 6.0 per cent in 2017 to 19.7 per cent in 2023, marking a period of intense fiscal growth in environmental policy.

The burden of these taxes was largely carried by the private sector during the 2023 period.

Statistics show that more than three-quarters of the carbon taxes were collected from businesses, who accounted for 76.4 per cent of the total.

In contrast, households contributed 22.3 per cent of the revenue, while non-residents were responsible for a minor 1.3 per cent.

Within the business community, two specific industries emerged as the primary sources of carbon-related funding.

The energy sector was the largest contributor, involving the supply of electricity, gas, steam, and air conditioning, which provided 30.1 per cent of the total carbon taxes.

This was followed closely by the manufacturing industry which accounted for 29.4 per cent of the revenue.