From October 1, 10, the 2023 types of goods that emit the most carbon during production as identified by the European Union (EU) as iron and steel, cement, fertilizer, aluminum, electricity and hydrogen will be required to compliance with reporting obligations on emissions standards under the “Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism” (CBAM).
Starting from 2026, if emissions exceed the set standard, manufacturers will be subject to a "carbon tax" - according to the current carbon price in the EU if they want to export to this market. How will Vietnamese goods be affected when the EU applies the CBAM Mechanism? And what needs to be done from both state management agencies and businesses to meet the increasing standards of the EU market - Vietnam's leading trading partner (3rd largest export market, Vietnam's 5th largest import market)?
In a number of recent seminars on green transformation, many experts said that the EU's "Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism" (CBAM) has a direct impact on Vietnam's four main industries: iron and steel, Cement, fertilizer and aluminum are not strong export industries of our country to the EU, so in the short term, Vietnam's overall exports to the EU will not be much affected.
However, Dr. Nguyen Van Hoi - Director of the Institute of Industry and Trade Strategy Research, Ministry of Industry and Trade cited the actual data of Vietnam's iron and steel products exported to the EU market in the first 8 months of 2023 as follows: “The products that we currently export a lot to Europe, especially iron and steel products. In the first 8 months of 2023 alone, iron and steel exports to the EU have doubled, meaning that now - by the end of 8 months, it reached 2,31 million tons, accounting for over 30% of Vietnam's total iron and steel exports in the past 8 months. The first 2023 months of XNUMX...".
Iron, steel, and aluminum are goods that Vietnam is exporting to the EU and will have to implement CBAM from October 1, 10.
Thus, there are Vietnamese export products that must comply with reporting obligations on emission standards according to the EU's "Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism" (CBAM). If they do not ensure the correct criteria and comply with CBAM's roadmap, manufacturers of the 6 types of goods mentioned above who want to export to the EU will have to buy "emission certificates" (also known as "carbon tax"). ) – from early 2026.
At the same time, the European Commission will evaluate how CBAM operates and consider the possibility of expanding its scope to more products and services.
In the longer term, the scope of CBAM could be expanded to include indirect emissions and other sectors as well as carbon-intensive products – such as energy-intensive manufacturing – business; and focus on specific fields such as: energy, minerals; Production and processing of some foods (sugar, starch, potatoes, tomatoes; production of some textile products; chemicals, construction...
Mr. Nguyen Hoa Cuong - Deputy Director of the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM) stated the fact, and said: "Regarding the story about the EU or related to the fact that the garment market in Bangladesh is one of Typical examples show that this is a general trend throughout the world. It's just a matter of time, maybe a little sooner or a little later; Maybe a little more industries or a little less industries... but clearly this is an irreversible trend.
It is better for us to be proactive - even for industries that have not yet had to impose taxes, we should think that the imposition of taxes will only happen in a day or two, and be clear about the product requirements for the markets. High-end is obviously much more demanding.
We can all see that this problem will incur a lot of costs for businesses, but on the contrary, when that product enters those markets, it will have advantages and can also be sold at a higher price. , higher revenues, and it is important that we are not left behind in today's new value chain story.”
Right from the beginning of 2023, the EU launched the "European Green Deal" with many implemented strategies aiming to "make the EU climate neutral by 2050".
Recently, the EU continued to issue warnings about increasing food safety violations in seafood products and dragon fruits imported into this market. The EU does not rule out the possibility of restricting imports of similar products from Vietnam if they do not ensure the environmental conditions set by the EU.
From these realities, economic expert, Dr. Vu Dinh Anh stated: "Carbon certificates as well as measures to protect the environment and combat climate change, in Vietnam we are also in the process of construction and implementation process in the near future.
Thus, implementing the requirements or regulations of the EU market will help us not only promote businesses but also help us in forming legal frameworks and mechanisms. , policies as well as the support of government agencies and functional agencies in supporting businesses through effective tools to help us protect the environment as well as combat climate change... ”.
At the recent Forum "Developing the carbon credit market - international experiences and lessons for Vietnam", a research team led by the University of Economics, Hanoi National University pointed out that every year Vietnam may have to bear an additional cost of carbon emission tax from 32-50 billion USD when exporting to the EU. Therefore, to increase the competitiveness of products and meet market needs, Vietnam needs to strengthen solutions to reduce emissions, from both the perspective of businesses, people and management agencies.
Accordingly, policymakers need to have detailed and specific regulations to guide businesses to proactively approach the "Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism" (CBAM) and Vietnam's roadmap to access CBAM. At the same time, build a carbon pricing mechanism and carbon credit market in Vietnam.
Mr. Pham Hong Diep, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Shinec Shipbuilding Industry Joint Stock Company (investor of Nam Cau Kien Industrial Park) said: "I know that currently the Government is also directing ministries and branches to develop strategies and frameworks." Legal – from 2025-2028, Vietnam must build a legal basis for this carbon credit market... As a business, we really want the government to quickly have a legal framework for carbon credits. Having a legal framework on carbon credits will make the green business development movement and businesses more excited about economic development closely associated with environmental protection...".
According to Dr. Nguyen Van Hoi - Director of the Institute for Industry and Trade Strategy Research, Ministry of Industry and Trade, in the immediate future, Vietnam needs to proactively dialogue with the EU to clarify regulations on CBAM, items and fields under this category. Subjects of application or incentives or exemptions.
Along with that, there needs to be preferential policies, capital support, and capacity building to help businesses convert to greener production technology. Businesses also need to proactively invest in technological innovation to save input materials, reduce energy consumption, and minimize emissions to the environment if they want their products to be consumed in markets. has high standards like the EU.
According to Nguyen Long
VOV
