Sweden to raise diesel, vehicle taxes

STOCKHOLM, March 10 (Chinese media) -- The Swedish government announced on Tuesday that it had proposed to raise diesel and vehicle taxes for cutting carbon emissions.

Energy taxes on diesel are set to rise by 0.40 kronor (about 0.04 U.S. dollars) per liter and a scale introduced to link vehicle tax to carbon emissions. Taxes will rise for every extra gram of carbon dioxide emitted, said the government in a joint statement.

The statement also pointed out that taxes on diesel would be raised in two 0.20-kronor (about 0.02 U.S. dollars) steps. The first raise was planned for January 2011 and the second for January 2013.

From January 2011 vehicle taxes will rise by five kronor for every extra gram of carbon dioxide a car emits, said the statement, adding that new eco-friendly cars will get exemption from vehicle taxes for the first five years from 2011.

"The rule should be that it would be expensive to drive with fossil fuels," Environment Minister Andreas Carlgren said at a press conference, according to the Swedish electronic newspaper The Local.

The proposals are part of Sweden's commitment to cut carbon emissions by 40 percent in comparison with 1990 levels, one of the most ambitious targets of all the European Union countries, reported The Local.