The European Commission accepted key proposals from Bosnia and Herzegovina to amend the Carbon Border Adaptation Mechanism (CBAM), paving the way for significantly more favorable conditions for electricity exports from our country in the European Union market.
The Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union of the European Commission has officially confirmed that proposals from Bosnia and Herzegovina are included in the draft amendments to the CBAM regulation, which have been submitted to the legislative procedure of the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union.
The proposed amendments allow the exporting country’s actual electricity grid mix, including renewable energy, to be taken into account when calculating emissions, while simultaneously simplifying the procedure for proving actual emissions.
It also recognizes electricity exported through power purchase agreements, including those concluded through an intermediary, to determine actual emissions precisely.
What is especially significant for Bosnian and Herzegovinian exporters is that retroactive enforcement of these amendments is proposed as of January 1, 2026, which removes the difficulties faced by electricity exporters across Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Millions in Savings and Improved Competitiveness
The Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Staša Košarac, said that institutions at all levels of government in Bosnia and Herzegovina made maximum efforts to warn the European Commission about the concerning effects of adopting the CBAM on the domestic power sector.
“The European Commission recognized the credibility of our request and proposed amendments to the CBAM regulation, which represent a significant step forward to a fairer CBAM adoption and preservation of the competitiveness of the electricity exporters from Republika Srpska, the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Brčko District on the market of the European Union,” Košarac emphasized.
In parallel, the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations of Bosnia and Herzegovina prepared the Draft Decision on Adopting the Methodology for Calculating the Carbon Dioxide Emission Factor of the Power Grid in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which creates the necessary preconditions for the timely adoption of the new European rules.
“The first amendment of the European Commission, along with the Draft Decision prepared by the Ministry, will significantly reduce expenses of the electricity export on the market of the European Union. According to our assessments, the savings could amount to up to 13 million euros annually, which strengthens the competitiveness of the domestic power-grid sector and protects export revenues,” the Minister said.
Draft Amendments of the CBAM regulation are currently in the legislative procedure of the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union, and the Ministry announced it will continue to actively cooperate with the European institutions until the final adoption of these measures.
