China Steel Corp (CSC, 中鋼) plans to impose a moderate carbon surcharge on steel exports in August next year ahead of the implementation of new EU carbon rules, it said yesterday.
A draft version of the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism is to be released in 2023 and implemented in 2026, affecting 248 items including steel, the company said.
Even though only about 3 percent of CSC’s products are exported to Europe, the company is taking the issue seriously and aims to minimize the impact on Taiwan’s steel industry, as the rules would have a more profound effect on downstream companies, it said.
Photo: Hung Chen-hung, Taipei Times
CSC only ships about 330,000 tonnes of steel to Europe each year, but the new regulations could disproportionately affect its downstream customers who have more exposure to the European market, it added.
CSC executive vice president and spokesman Hwang Chien-chih (黃建智) said the company is looking to impose a carbon surcharge in August next year, but details of the scheme, including how much the surcharge would be, have not yet been finalized.
“The first challenge is to actually calculate the carbon footprint of all our products,” Huang said.
Other major economies such as the US and China are also expected to soon adopt their own carbon pricing schemes, he said.
“CSC not only has to come up with a carbon pricing scheme, we have to do so in a way that is transparent and recognized worldwide,” Huang said.
The company is looking to Germany’s ThyssenKrupp AG as an example in imposing a carbon surcharge, it said.
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