Because Taiwan’s carbon emission tariffs were postponed to 2024 and the Russia-Ukraine war impacted the supply of natural gas from the US and Europe a lot, Taiwan’s China Steel Corporation (CSC) decided to suspend the carbon surcharge of export sales originally scheduled in the third quarter of this year.

The EU’s Carbon Border Tax was expected to be implemented in 2026, and it will impact Taiwan’s steel industries a lot. Although exports to Europe account for merely 3% of CSC’s total production, it will impact downstream manufacturers, whose products are mainly exported abroad.

Carbon neutrality is always an issue that global markets are concerned about these years. Therefore, in order to increase competitiveness and follow current global trends, steel mills have to think about how to reduce carbon emissions.