EU states mull seeking more carbon permits: diplomat

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Several European Union countries, including France, are discussing the possibility of asking for more carbon emission permits from a reserve fund of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), an EU diplomat said.

The diplomat made the comments on Thursday, one day after Poland and Estonia made headway in a court challenge to their own emissions caps.

The discussions center on the "New Entrants Reserve" of the ETS, a reserve of carbon permits intended to be used for new businesses joining the scheme as economies expand.

"The question of the reserve for new entrants is being asked in several EU countries, among them France, but at this point there is no formal demand of reviewing the allocation plan," the diplomat said.

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has written to the European Commission asking to renegotiate the caps on his country's carbon dioxide emissions, an Italian government official said on Thursday.

(Reporting by Pete Harrison, editing by Dale Hudson)