ERCST CBAM Roundtable Cillian O’Donoghue, Director

Transcript:ERCST CBAM Roundtable Cillian O’Donoghue, Director:
ERCST CBAM Roundtable Cillian O’Donoghue, Director of Climate & Energy, Eurometaux Friday, 4th June 2021 Eurometaux – The European Non Ferrous Metals Association Setting the Scene Pg.2 Our starting basis is that CBAM should increase not decrease carbon leakage protection. Especially important given the increased ambition of the 55% target If this is not the case, then what is the point of a CBAM??? Today, I will go through 4 issues: Scope 2 Emissions: Dealing with Indirect Carbon costs Pg.3 Direct carbon emissions = direct costs Indirect carbon emissions ≠ Indirect carbon costs We can see how a CBAM can cover the first 2 elements BUT We cannot see how a CBAM can be designed to cover indirect carbon costs which European industries are exposed to We have looked into this as Eurometaux. The ERCST have also looked into it. Our conclusion is that indirect carbon costs cannot be covered in a CBAM. Thus, indirect costs compensation would need to be maintained at least up to 2030 There are three (not two) different elements which need to taken into consideration for a CBAM Rebates – exports out of the EU The EU’s specific carbon costs will have to be reimbursed somehow in order to make exports competitive. Then, how can we ensure the competitiveness of our exports in global markets? One underlying problem is how to handle the exports out of the EU? The Commission seemed not to have found a way to include export rebates. Most likely this will be regarded as an export subsidy by the WTO and hence be challenged by our global competitors. Value chain - EU producer’s competitiveness will diminish at the cost of climate and jobs Pg.5 Whole range of finished and semi-finished products are produced in Europe The production cost will increase in Europe while importers of same products will not be exposed to similar cost increase Even if some CBAM along the value chain it will: Never be able to cover the whole value chain - large number of important products will not be under any carbon cost regime Verification of carbon content for complicated products cannot be established in phase 1. Need experience A CBAM on Aluminium and other Non-Ferrous Metals would be easily circumvented Pg.6 ~88% of Chinese primary aluminum production based on coal-fired power, whereas the remaining 12% is hydropower.* So it would be easy to allocate this 12%