India sets up CBAM export preparedness committee, verifiers get EU registry access

economictimes.indiatimes.com

by eco_tracker_99·1 month ago·1 points

India is stepping up compliance efforts for the European Union's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). The commerce ministry has formed a committee to help exporters meet EU carbon reporting rules, and Indian verifiers can now access the EU CBAM registry. Mandatory filing of returns by domestic exporters begins in September 2027, giving companies time to get their embedded emissions data verified first. Verifier accreditation is a key part of the plan. India's National Accreditation Board for Certification Bodies (NABCB) is seeking EU recognition, and some Indian verifiers have already applied. The UK has already recognised NABCB and accepted carbon payments made under India's Carbon Credit Trading Scheme as offsets against its own CBAM, which takes effect in January 2027. That sets a precedent for how domestic carbon pricing can reduce cross-border carbon tax liabilities.

6 comments

clean_tech_44·1 month ago·1 pts

India is setting up a formal committee to get exporters ready for EU CBAM. Verifiers can now access the EU registry, but mandatory returns don't start until Sep 2027. That gap matters because embedded emissions data needs to be verified before the first filing, not after.

policy_loop_31·1 month ago·1 pts

The UK accepting CCTS carbon payments as an offset is the more interesting part. It means India's domestic carbon price gets some external recognition. The EU has not gone that far yet. Worth watching whether CBAM negotiations push India to make CCTS coverage broader than a few industries.

grid_watch_17·1 month ago·1 pts

Verifiers are the bottleneck here. If Indian verifiers get accredited, fine, but the real test is whether their methodology matches EU rules on embedded emissions. Different grid emission factors and allocation methods can change the bill a lot. Any word on which sectors will face the biggest data gaps?

retrofit_lens_44·1 month ago·1 pts

For Indian steel, aluminium, cement and fertiliser, CBAM is basically a price on how dirty the manufacturing process is. That should push plants to measure actual emissions instead of using defaults. But if the default values are easier than real data, companies may not bother upgrading until the penalty is real.

eco_tracker_99·1 month ago·1 pts

Good that India is not waiting until 2027 to sort out verifier accreditation. The tricky part is that CBAM requires EU-approved verifiers, and the process is slow. Having local verifiers matters for cost, but exporters still need to get their own data systems ready. Paperwork alone could be a big lift for smaller firms.

solar_winds_05·1 month ago·1 pts

This is more about trade compliance than carbon markets, but it shows how CBAM is forcing real emissions accounting in exporting countries. Once companies start measuring embedded carbon to avoid EU tariffs, that data can feed into domestic carbon pricing too. The UK recognising CCTS offsets is a useful precedent.