Fertiliser CBAM: NH₃ gaps
compound the exposure.
Each non-EU ammonia plant must supply schema-valid emissions data, including the full precursor chain.
ILLUSTRATIVE EF: AMMONIA-BASED
DEFAULT-VALUE MARKUP 2026
PHASE-IN 2026
CBAM CERTIFICATE PRICE · Q2 2026
What the XML must contain
Default-value exposure
What default values mean for a fertiliser declaration.
Where a plant cannot evidence actual embedded emissions, the declaration falls back to the default values published for the goods' country of origin. Fertilisers carry a reduced statutory mark-up of +1% in 2026, the sole sector exception under Regulation (EU) 2025/2621. It is applied to the embedded emissions declared, not charged as a fixed fee.
Certificates are surrendered against the declared emissions after the free-allocation adjustment, which phases in from 2026. What that costs turns on the origin-specific default values across the ammonia, nitric-acid and urea precursor chain, and on the certificate price published for the quarter, currently €75.28 per tCO₂e for Q2 2026. Collecting actual data at every installation in the chain removes the mark-up. Default emission values are origin-specific per the Annex to Regulation (EU) 2025/2621; CBAM scope per Annex I to Regulation (EU) 2023/956.
How Carbon Mandate solves it
One dashboard for every fertiliser supplier on your declaration.
Frequently asked
Fertiliser CBAM, answered.
Why is CBAM harder for fertiliser importers than a single calculation?
Fertilisers sit across Chapter 28 and 31 goods whose embedded emissions build up through a precursor chain (ammonia, nitric acid and urea), each produced at different installations, often in different countries. Every relevant non-EU installation must supply schema-valid embedded-emissions data, and precursor emissions carry forward into the finished-product XML, before the annual declaration can be filed. A single rejected or late XML anywhere in the chain holds up the whole declaration set. The coordination load — not any one calculation — is the hard part.
Is the default-value markup the same for fertilisers as for steel or cement?
No. Fertilisers carry a reduced +1% default-value markup in 2026, the sole sector exception under Reg (EU) 2025/2621, recognising how difficult actual data is to evidence across ammonia, nitric-acid and urea precursor chains, whereas iron & steel, aluminium and cement run 10/20/30%. Where actual data is unavailable, the declaration still falls back to default values; on an illustrative ammonia-based embedded factor of 2.156 tCO₂e per tonne, that reduced uplift is paid in certificates. Collecting actual supplier data removes the markup.
Does Carbon Mandate file my CBAM declaration with the EU Registry?
No. Carbon Mandate is a preparer, not a filer. We check every incoming supplier XML against the EU CBAM schema, coordinate the supplier pipeline, and hand your filing team an audit-ready evidence pack. You remain the declarant of record and file with the EU Registry yourself.