The EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism entered its definitive phase in January 2026, requiring importers of steel, aluminium, cement, and fertiliser to account for embedded emissions. Indian exporters are exposed because much of their steel comes from coal-heavy blast furnaces, and the CBAM certificate price sits around 75 euros per tonne. The Centre for Science and Environment estimates the mechanism could eventually add costs equivalent to roughly a quarter of affected export value. A core problem is the mismatch between India's Carbon Credit Trading Scheme, which uses emissions-intensity targets, and the EU's absolute pricing of embedded emissions. Unless Europe accepts India's intensity-based compliance as a deductible carbon price, exporters may pay at home and again at the border. The article argues India needs installation-level data, calibrated emission factors, accredited verifiers, and a registry that foreign systems trust, turning carbon accounting into export infrastructure.
