EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism and Due Diligence Act - Impacts and Opportunities for the Aluminium Supply Chain {{SMM Aluminium Conference}}

On April 17, at the AICE 2025 SMM (20th) Aluminum Industry Conference & Aluminum Industry Expo - Aluminum Industry Chain Sustainable Development Forum, hosted by SMM Information & Technology Co., Ltd. (SMM), SMM Metal Trading Center, and Shandong Aisi Information Technology Co., Ltd., and co-organized by Zhongyifeng Jinyi (Suzhou) Technology Co., Ltd. and Lezhi County Qianrun Investment Promotion Service Co., Ltd., Yue Qingsong, General Manager of the Risk Management Solutions Center and General Manager of the Energy & Low Carbon Division in China at SGS, shared insights on the impacts and opportunities of the EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) and the Due Diligence Act on the aluminum supply chain.

How to Identify Carbon Certification Standards

Green Development: The Inevitable Trend

He elaborated on topics such as the Paris Agreement on climate change, China's 30-60 "dual carbon" goals, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), "the third distribution" and common prosperity, the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity COP15 Kunming Declaration, and more.

Enterprises participating in the carbon trading market need to conduct inventories of their own carbon emissions and disclose relevant information. Investors and shareholders are placing increasing importance on sustainability information, necessitating more comprehensive non-financial disclosures from enterprises. Supervision is intensifying, with mandatory requirements on the rise.

Certification Requirements Faced by Enterprises

Key Standards

He also introduced the SGS Greenhouse Gas Verification Certificate - Organization Level, the SGS Product Carbon Footprint Assessment Certificate, relevant standards, and the SGS Carbon Neutrality Service Certificate.

The Main Process for a Company to Achieve Carbon Neutrality

Step-1: Conduct a carbon inventory, Step-2: Set carbon reduction targets, Step-3: Implement carbon reduction targets, Step-4: Carbon offsetting, Step-5: Achieve carbon neutrality.

Differences Between the EU's Carbon Tariff and Existing Standards

CBAM Background

• In 2019, the European Green Deal was launched, with its primary objective being to transform Europe into the first climate-neutral continent. The European Commission proposed a series of initiatives in climate, energy, transportation, and tax policy, aiming to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, while decoupling economic growth from resource use.

• The Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), also known as the carbon tariff or carbon border adjustment tax, requires the payment or refund of corresponding taxes or carbon allowances for high-carbon products imported or exported, on the basis of implementing strict domestic climate policies.

Differences Between CBAM and Existing Standards

Analysis of CBAM's Impact on China (2022 Data)

(Note: In 2022, the average carbon price in the EU was 81 euros/mt, and in 2024, it was 65 euros/mt.)

It also introduced the EU CBAM operational flowchart and the calculation formula during the EU CBAM transitional period.

EU New Battery Regulation (EU) 2023/1542

The EU New Battery Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 came into effect on August 17, 2023. This regulation aims to strengthen the market operation of batteries within the EU (including products, processes, waste batteries, and material recycling), promote a circular economy, and reduce the environmental and social impacts of batteries throughout their entire life cycle.

The EU New Battery Regulation imposes mandatory requirements on all types of batteries (except those for military, aerospace, and nuclear energy purposes) placed on the EU market, as well as those installed as key components in equipment imported into Europe. These requirements cover sustainability and safety, labeling, information, due diligence, waste battery management, battery passports, green public procurement, and other aspects. Meanwhile, the regulation specifies the responsibilities and obligations of manufacturers, importers, and distributors of batteries and battery-containing products, and establishes conformity assessment procedures and market surveillance requirements. Manufacturers of battery cells, modules, battery packs, ESS battery systems, power battery systems, and end-use products should pay close attention.

EU New Battery Regulation (EU) – Battery Passport Requirements

Standardization and Informatization Support Corporate Carbon Neutrality

Building a Corporate Carbon Management System Based on Carbon Management System Standards

The World's First EATNS Carbon Management System Standard: Carbon Emissions, Carbon Trading, Carbon Assets, Carbon Neutrality, Carbon Credit.

The Necessity of a Carbon Management Informatization System

Information-Based Carbon Data Management: Facilitates the collection, organization, and analysis of corporate carbon data, improving work efficiency. Real-time data collection and calculation are achieved through IoT technology, preventing data tampering and fraud. It supports the supervision and management of energy conservation and emission reduction, enabling enterprises to link energy conservation with carbon emission reduction, achieving true emission reduction and efficiency enhancement. It also helps enterprises respond to policy changes and fluctuations in the carbon finance market, enabling early prediction and operation to increase the value of corporate carbon assets.

It introduced Version 1.0 of the Corporate Carbon Calculation System Solution.

Version 2.0 of the Corporate Carbon Calculation System Solution

1. When the management platform is fully established and can track the electricity consumption of each production section, we can directly connect the information from the corporate management platform to the carbon meter. Professionals can preset the carbon meter based on production conditions to obtain real-time carbon emission data.

2. For those with an inadequate system, it is necessary to install smart meters to collect key data for carbon meters and open a manual entry page to record necessary information.

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