Capabilities of transformation from carbon-based into a sustainable and low-emission energy mix. Case study for Poland

The power systems in European Union operates under energy and climate policies where the carbon neutrality and CO
₂
emissions reduction are important targets. Currently, there is a lot of discussion about the future shape of the EU ETS system. It should provide the effective emissions reduction but also take into account the impact of such reduction on local economy of each Member State. In the paper the discussion about different means to ensure CO
₂
emissions reduction with possible low costs of transformation of carbon-based power system is presented. This means are: increasing EUA price and cap for maximal CO
₂
emissions in the power system. The methodology used in the paper includes the generation expansion planning optimization model eMix that estimates the energy mix in long term horizon. The results presented include the total electricity generation divided into technologies, CO
₂
emissions and cost of electricity generation. To quantify the relation between emissions reduction and costs, the novel coefficient is introduced. The results show that the simple solutions to force the CO
₂
emissions reduction by imposing the cap for maximum emissions can lead to better results than the increasing EUA price.