The European Union's carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) aims to prevent carbon leakage by aligning the carbon costs of foreign producers with those of EU producers within the EU market. Europe's push to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 55 percent by 2030 is prompting a major overhaul of its climate policies. Central to this transformation is the "Fit for 55" package, which reinforces the environmental ambition of the EU carbon market and introduces the world's first carbon border adjustment mechanism.
CBAM is a levy on the carbon emissions embedded in products imported into the EU. Carbon leakage occurs when companies based in the EU move carbon-intensive production abroad to countries where less stringent climate policies are in place compared to the EU, or when EU products get replaced by more carbon-intensive imports. January 1, 2026, is the starting date for the implementation of CBAM.
For a better understanding of the size of emissions levies, the SteelOrbis Team has developed an interactive databoard with CBAM cost calculations in the EU for the main importers in terms of the main raw materials and carbon steel products starting from 2026. All the information and calculations in the study allow readers to assess the current CBAM costs in the EU and to build a short-term cost and price forecast. All financial data are expressed in Euros (EUR) and US dollars (USD).
The CBAM cost calculations cover imports of raw materials and carbon steel products by main types of steel process (BOF, EAF from scrap, EAF from DRI/HBI) from the main supplier regions to the EU.
The main supplier regions are:
The raw materials and carbon steel products covered are: