Staalfederatie calls for urgent clarification on CBAM
The Koninklijke Staalfederatie has issued a strong call for clarification regarding the implementation of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), warning that the current framework risks causing serious disruption to the Dutch manufacturing industry and wider European steel supply chains.
According to the Staalfederatie, the introduction of CBAM — designed to apply a carbon price to imported products in order to ensure a level playing field with EU producers subject to strict climate policies — remains highly complex in practice for the Dutch steel market. While the mechanism aims to prevent carbon leakage and protect European industry, its operational rollout is creating uncertainty across the supply chain.
A central concern is the absence of a fully workable verification procedure for embedded emissions. The first financial settlement under CBAM will take place in 2027 for imports made in 2026. However, importers currently lack clarity on how actual emissions will be verified. In the meantime, many companies must rely on default values established at EU level. These values are reported to be significantly higher than expected real emission intensities, resulting in potentially inflated cost projections.
This uncertainty makes it difficult for importers to determine final cost exposure and, consequently, what should be passed on to customers. The Federation warns that this situation could have serious implications for the competitiveness of downstream companies operating within the Dutch manufacturing sector. At present, comparable levies have not yet been introduced for many downstream products, adding to market imbalance risks.
Staalfederatie also highlights broader implementation challenges. Available calculation tools and current default values are said not to provide a realistic picture of the financial impact. In some cases, existing commercial contracts may no longer be economically viable once full CBAM costs are factored in. As a result, price predictability is weakened and supply chain stability may be affected.
In addition, practical compliance obligations — including mandatory registration in the CBAM registry and authorisation by the Dutch Emissions Authority for imports exceeding 50 tonnes of steel or aluminium — add further administrative complexity.
Staalfederatie therefore calls for the CBAM system to be simplified and made operationally workable as quickly as possible. In particular, it urges the accelerated introduction of a functioning verification process, no later than 1 July 2026, to ensure that companies gain timely clarity on the real financial impact and can price contracts for 2027 with greater certainty.
