BRUSSELS, July 4 (Xinhua) -- The European Commission, the executive arm of the European Union (EU), on Tuesday reviewed more than one hundred energy tax breaks that are due to expire by the end of the year.

    According to a communication adopted by the Commission, most of the tax breaks, also known as derogations, are no longer needed.

    However, the communication still provides a wide range of flexible options that encourage member states to apply favorable tax treatment on certain products like environmentally-friendly fuels and services such as public transportation.

    "The expiry of the derogations is an important step towards the effective implementation of the Energy Tax Directive," said Taxation Commissioner Laszlo Kovacs.

    "I invite the member states to take today's communication into consideration when assessing their interest in renewing any of the derogations," he added.

    Since 2004, the taxation of energy products and electricity in the EU has been governed by the Energy Tax Directive, under which there are more than one hundred derogations authorizing member states to apply reduced tax rates or exemptions. Enditem