The EU will issue guidance in the first half of 2026 on new provisions that could allow for the temporary suspension of the bloc's carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) for specific sectors, including fertilizers. And the bloc gave more details on a €48bn package of measures to aid farmers.
Draft reforms and tweaks to the CBAM were announced in December. Trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic said article 27a, proposed last month, could allow for its "temporary suspension" for certain goods "if market circumstances justify [it]".
"It could also apply retroactively from 1 January 2026," Sefcovic said, urging EU states and the European Parliament to approve the changes as soon as possible.
Sefcovic did not give a timeline but said EU agriculture ministers broadly approve, while also noting positive "echoes" in parliament.
The commission will also propose temporarily removing standard import tariffs for urea, ammonia and possibly other fertilizers.
The commission will also "mobilise" an additional €48.7bn, available as soon as 2028, to support farmers and rural communities and "may" increase this to €63.7bn through EU loans, a commission meeting note indicates. The note adds that "while fertilizer prices have stabilised, they remain around 60pc higher than in 2020".
