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Concerns in Türkiye's steel industry are growing over the European Union’s upcoming carbon border tax, as a top sector official warned that new safeguard measures tied to the bloc’s Green Deal may severely limit exports at a time when production and trade volumes are recovering.
The measures taking effect on January 1, 2026 pose an even more direct threat to Türkiye’s steel sector than China’s excess capacity, Turkish Steel Producers Association (TCUD) Chairman Veysel Yayan said. Along with the carbon tax, the proposed import quotas, set to take effect in the second half of 2026, stand as the most immediate threat to the industry, he added.
"We are deeply concerned that these measures could severely damage our steel exports," Yayan remarked.
Yayan warned that these EU initiatives may bring free trade “close to a standstill” and urged authorities to adopt reciprocal measures to safeguard domestic producers. He called for a balanced response framework to ensure the sustainability of the sector, which has faced increasing competition from subsidized global players and potential regulatory disruptions within key export markets such as the E.U.
The Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) aims to equalize carbon costs between E.U. and non-E.U. producers by requiring importers to pay a carbon levy unless their own country enforces comparable emissions pricing. For steelmakers in countries like Türkiye, which export large volumes to the E.U. but lack a domestic carbon pricing system aligned with Brussels, this could raise costs and diminish competitiveness.
On the other hand, the European Commission’s proposal to protect E.U. steelmakers includes provisions for cuts of up to 47%, limiting tariff-free import volumes to 18.3 million tons per year.
According to Eurostat, Türkiye exported 4.63 million tons, or €3.5 billion ($4.12 billion), worth of steel products to the E.U. in 2024, representing around a 21% share of the country’s total steel exports, which amounted to $16.14 billion.
According to data from the Turkish Steel Producers Association (TCUD), the country produced 3.3 million tons of crude steel in November 2025, marking a 10% increase from the same month last year. For the first 11 months of the year, output rose 2% to 34.6 million tons.
Final product consumption reached 3.7 million tons in November, showing a modest 0.5% year-on-year rise. Over the January–November period, consumption rose 2.4% to 35.9 million tons.
Steel exports increased significantly in November 2025. Türkiye exported 1.2 million tons of steel products during the month, up 22.2% in volume terms and 9.8% in value to $774.8 million. Over the January–November period, exports totaled 13.7 million tons, a 13.3% rise from the previous year, while the total value reached $9.3 billion, up 4.5%.
Meanwhile, imports in November fell 3.5% by volume to 1.7 million tons and declined 5.2% in value to $1.1 billion. For the cumulative period, however, imports rose 11.8% to 17.4 million tons in volume and 0.9% to $12.1 billion in value.
The export-to-import coverage ratio improved from 74.1% in the January–November 2024 period to 76.8% during the same period in 2025.
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