Jung Da-hyun is a reporter at The Korea Times, covering social issues in Korea, including foreign residents, education, environment and politics. Driven by a deep interest in people’s stories, she focuses on investigative and feature reporting through direct interviews and field coverage. She received the Amnesty International Korea Media Award for her “Deepfake Crisis at Schools” series. Reach her at dahyun08@koreatimes.co.kr. Always open to hearing your stories.
INTERVIEW EU ready to work with Korea on fine-tuning new carbon tariff
Gerassimos Thomas, director-general for taxation and customs at the European Commission / Courtesy of Delegation of European Union in Korea
By Jung Da-hyun
Senior European official says mechanism to be designed collaboratively
during transition period
during transition period
Climate issues are a global problem and a new carbon tariff to be imposed by the European Union in 2026 will serve as an effective environmental measure, especially for countries like Korea with an existing carbon pricing system, a senior European official said.
In a recent group interview participated in by The Korea Times, Gerassimos Thomas, director-general for taxation and customs at the European Commission, addressed concerns and criticisms regarding the new carbon tariff, called the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), which will be imposed on certain imports, including steel, cement, fertilizer and aluminum.
“The climate issues we face are global problems that require collective action,” he said.
The EU's proactive stance is driven by varying levels of carbon-related regulations across countries. The EU, sensitive to climate change, attributes events like heat waves and droughts to carbon emissions and has implemented diverse environmental regulations.
While the CBAM has raised concerns among trading partners about potential burdens on companies and nations, Thomas assured that the European Commission is actively addressing these issues.
During his visit to Korea in November, he engaged in discussions with government and business officials to address concerns and incorporate their suggestions.
He explained that the EU is taking steps to address business concerns, including the potential leaking of confidential information during the filing process of CBAM. According to Thomas, the European Commission committed to modifying its IT system so as to restrict access to confidential information to relevant authorities only.
To address concerns about reporting frequency, the commission agreed to shift from quarterly to annual reporting after the transition period concludes in 2026.
“Quarterly reporting is necessary during the transition period to gather information for the final design of the mechanism,” he said.
Gerassimos Thomas, left, director-general for taxation and customs at the European Commission, shakes hands with First Vice Finance Minister Kim Byoung-hwan ahead of their meeting at the Export-Import Bank of Korea in Yeouido, Seoul, Nov. 15. Yonhap
Also on Nov. 14, Thomas held a meeting with First Vice Finance Minister Kim Byoung-hwan to discuss related issues.
During the meeting, Thomas acknowledged Korea's credit certification system and committed to considering opinions to avoid burdening Korean companies unnecessarily.
“We have also invited the Korean government to be an observer in our expert team that develops all the rules and regulations for CBAM,” he said.
He also discussed the varying impacts of CBAM on large and small companies. Regarding major producers such as POSCO or Hyundai Steel, he observed that they are already well prepared for the new mechanism. Consequently, during the meetings in Korea, the focus of discussions was on reducing the administrative burden for these industry giants.
“I think what is crucial from these meetings is to fine-tune our guidance concerning smaller companies,” he noted.
Regarding criticisms that countries that contributed significantly to past carbon emissions are now calling for developing nations to act more responsibly, Thomas emphasized that CBAM addresses a common problem shared by nations worldwide.
He also underscored the significance of the transition period as an opportunity to address the concerns that CBAM currently faces.
“We have been very open and transparent about the development of the instrument,” he added.
With a lengthy transition period of two and a half years, Thomas explained that they will design the instrument collaboratively with third countries to achieve their environmental objectives.