European aluminium industry sources have welcomed the European Parliament's move to extend the carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) to more than 180 steel and aluminium-intensive downstream products, including pipes, tubes, fasteners, wire and household goods.
Parliament detailed the extension on 15 September while announcing its rejection of a proposed new Article 27a that would have allowed the temporary suspension of the CBAM for certain products. It had previously confirmed an expansion for a long list of downstream goods containing steel or aluminium in July.
Parliament has also proposed reducing a planned 50t exemption threshold for aluminium to 5t. And it has created a temporary decarbonisation fund to support EU exporters facing higher carbon-related input costs than their international competitors.
"We have closed important loopholes, strengthened enforcement against circumvention and expanded the mechanism's scope where it matters most. It is a balanced package that protects European industry as it decarbonises while safeguarding the environmental integrity of the mechanism," MEP and CBAM rapporteur Mohammed Chahim said.
Industry sources have welcomed the new measures to broaden the CBAM's coverage and enforce stronger anti-circumvention rules against resource shuffling, which they say will ensure greater carbon-cost equality between imported and domestic European aluminium products.
