Extending the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism to Indirect Emissions: Implications for Finland

Abstract

This report examines the planned extension of the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) to indirect emissions and its coordination with the existing indirect cost compensation under the EU Emissions Trading System. The study provides an overview of Finland’s CBAM sectors, estimates tariff elasticities using a gravity model for the years 2010–2023, and simulates three scenarios in which the inclusion of indirect emissions in the CBAM extension is combined with different changes to indirect cost compensation. The results indicate that import responses to the CBAM extension are most pronounced in the aluminium sector, while the effects on iron and steel are more moderate. The scenario analysis suggests that extending CBAM to indirect emissions would reduce imports by a few percentage points, whereas the simultaneous phase-out of indirect cost compensation would have only a limited additional impact. Consequently, the extension would help reduce the risk of carbon leakage, although it would also increase the cost of imports in Finland.

Publication info

Results of research
Impacts of the extension of the Carbon Border Mechanism to indirect emissions
Research group
Macroeconomy and public finances
Series
ETLA Raportit - Reports 178
Date
10.06.2026
Keywords
Carbon leakage, Carbon border adjustment mechanism, Gravity model, Tariff elasticity
ISSN
2323-2447, 2323-2455 (Pdf)
JEL
F18, Q56, Q58, C23
Pages
32
Language
Finnish