It is in every country's interest that the deployment of carbon-change-mitigation technologies
(CCMTs) be accomplished at the lowest possible cost to society and that their diffusion be rapid. Reducing
barriers to trade is one way to accomplish that, especially given that it is unlikely that every country will
become proficient in the production of every CCMT. This study provides a preliminary assessment of the
significance of tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade in a representative selection of CCMTs chosen from
among those that have been identified by the IPCC and the IEA as having a large economic potential for
mitigation, are globally traded, and can be easily adapted to national circumstances. Those examined in the
report include: (a) technologies, such as gas-fired reciprocating engines, used in the co-production of both
process (or district) heat and electric power (CHP); (b) technologies, such as pipes and meters, used in the
production and delivery of heating and cooling at the scale of a city district (DHC); (c) technologies that
harness solar energy to heat water or heat or cool the air in buildings (SHC); and (d) relatively energyefficient
electric motors and related systems. The study finds that trade in CCMTs faces higher tariffs in
some non-OECD countries than in OECD countries. Judging from information provided by exporters in
response to a questionnaire, non-tariff measures are common, and in some countries are acting as barriers
to trade. Overcoming some of the general measures that impede trade will take time. However, the
problems that lax enforcement of intellectual property rights, cumbersome customs-clearance procedures
and non-transparent government procurement create for trade in CCTMs should be regarded as providing
additional reasons for importing countries to address these issues urgently. Finally, importers may need, at
the same time, to examine their domestic policies in order to address behind-the-border impediments to the
diffusion of CCMT technologies.
