The Polish NAP was accepted by the Commission on 26 March on condition that it is slashed to 208.5 million tonnes (Mt), or 26.7% down from the 284.6 Mt originally sought by Poland.
The Czech plan was accepted with similar conditions, with Brussels requiring a 14.8% cut in projected emissions, down to 86.8 Mt from the 101.9 Mt originally requested by the government.
With total emissions above 200 Mt, the Polish plan is the third-largest assessed so far, after Germany and the UK, said Commission spokesperson Barbara Helfferich.
In the same series of decisions, Brussels said it had accepted the proposed French NAP with an overall emissions cap of 132.8 Mt for 2008-2012. The French had withdrawn their plan at the last minute in November 2006 after the government realised that the proposed cap of 155.6 Mt would likely face rejection.
European carbon markets hailed the Commission's move with prices for a tonne of CO2 for delivery in 2008 closing at €17.50 on the European Climate Exchange on 23 March, its highest level since the beginning of the year.
The Commission said that it has assessed a total of 17 plans out of 26 notified so far. Bulgaria is the only remaining EU country that has still not notified its plan.
