Nitrogen producer CF Industries has urged the US Trade Representative (USTR) to press the EU to revise its Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) ammonia default value for the US, arguing that it is inaccurate and is putting US nitrogen producers at a disadvantage in the EU.
In response to a USTR call for public comments on CBAM, CF says the EU should lower the US ammonia default value and make the corresponding changes to downstream nitrogen fertilizers. The company also wants clearer rules allowing US producers to use verified emissions data rather than rely on EU default values.
"CBAM should recognize the lower carbon intensity of US ammonia and nitrogen fertilizer production and strengthen, not undermine the case for investment in US ammonia and nitrogen fertilizer manufacturing," CF said.
If the EU does not change the default value, CF requested the USTR evaluate taking other trade actions against the EU, but emphasized the importance of avoiding tariffs on equipment that could be used to repair or modernize US ammonia and nitrogen plants.
CF argues that the higher default value has created "unfair and material barriers" to US exports. The company said some customers favor suppliers from countries with lower default values even though actual emissions may be higher than US exports because carbon intensities are not verified until the calendar year after the import happened. Meanwhile, other importers are seeking better terms or guarantees from US producers because of uncertainty over final CBAM liabilities and potential verification failures.
Trade data so far has lined up with CF's comment. US exports of UAN to the EU have fallen dramatically over the last year following the implementation of CBAM at the start of 2026, according to the US Census Bureau. US exports of liquid fertilizer urea ammonium nitrate (UAN) from January through September of 2026 totaled only 42,000t, representing an 88pc decline from average exports over the prior three years.
US ammonia exports, on the other hand, lag the three-year average by 16pc over the same period, totaling about 202,000t.
The EU CBAM default value for the US is 3.41t CO2-equivalent/metric tonnes(t) of ammonia, which is the third-highest country default value for ammonia. CF highlighted that the US ammonia production has total embedded emissions of 2.14t CO2-equivalent/t, which is around 37pc below the EU's default value, based on a production-weighted analysis of US government data. This figure does not reflect CF's carbon caputre and storage project at its Donalsonville, Louisiana, complex, which launched in July 2025 and has the capacity to capture up to 2mn t/yr of CO2.
The US producer also said the EU's approach to calculating carbon intensity does not follow common accounting practices and that measuring emissions from a single complex rather than by a production unit basis disincentivizes capital investment to reduce carbon emissions. CF is also concerned because the EU does not address the use of enhanced oil recovery alongside carbon capture in its methodology, a process currently being used by CF's Donaldsonville plant.
