The price of carbon credits in the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) stayed stable after the European Commission released preliminary figures suggesting emissions from companies covered by the scheme fell by 11.2 percent in 2009.

The drop in emissions was largely due to last year’s economic downturn and was in line with analyst expectations. It brings the EU closer to its goal of reducing emissions by 20 percent this decade.

“The fall in emissions is exactly as expected,” Kjersti Ulset,  analyst firm Point Carbon, told the UK’s Guardian newspaper. “But prices have increased this morning probably because uncertainty about the emission levels has been removed.”

The news did not affect the price of carbon, which stayed at about the equivalent of $17.50.

The preliminary data revealed that carbon emissions fell right across the EU with emissions falling 12.5 percent in Britain, 8.4 percent in Germany, 16.3 percent in Spain and 16.4 percent in Italy, the paper reported.

The final data will be released this month.

The EU ETS is in its fifth year. The scheme covers around 11,000 installations including power plants, oil refineries and producers of steel, paper, pulp, glass, lime, brick, ceramics and cement. They must have an allowance for each ton of carbon dioxide they emit in burning fossil fuels. Those that produce more than their allowances need to buy more; those that emit less can sell their surplus.