How is the CBAM figure for aluminium sheet, wire and foil from a smelter calculated?

In the Commission's aluminium example, the smelter's 311,000 t CO2e over 200,000 t gives 1.555 t per tonne of unwrought metal. Rolling uses 1.062 t of slab per tonne of products, so 1.651, plus 0.047 from natural gas: 1.698 t CO2e per tonne of sheet, wire or foil.

The plant in the example

• Smelter output 200,000 t: 80,000 t of ingots sold, 120,000 t of slab sent to rolling.
• Products: 45,000 t of wire (CN 7605), 60,000 t of sheet (7606) and 8,000 t of foil (7607), 113,000 t in all, plus 7,000 t of scrap sold.
• Two production processes, because ingots are sold. The three product codes share one process, as they differ only in size or shape with the same composition.

The smelter's 311,000 t

• Anodes consumed, net of stumps returned: 69,000 t, counted as carbon, x 3.664 t CO2 per tonne of carbon = 252,816 t CO2.
• Natural gas: 32,902 t CO2.
• PFCs from anode effects: 25,282 t CO2e.
• Left out: making anodes on site (anodes count as raw material with zero embedded emissions), alumina, and all electricity.

The rolling mill's 0.047

1,962 t of natural gas at 48 GJ per tonne and 56.1 t CO2 per TJ gives 5,283 t CO2, over 113,000 t of products. Scrap leaving the mill carries zero emissions, which is why 120,000 t of slab is spread over 113,000 t of products.

The guidance's calculation

• Unwrought aluminium: 311,000 / 200,000 = 1.555 t CO2e per tonne
• Slab per tonne of products: 120,000 / 113,000 = 1.062
• Slab's share: 1.555 x 1.062 = 1.651
• Rolling gas: 5,283 / 113,000 = 0.047
• Sheet, wire and foil: 1.651 + 0.047 = 1.698 t CO2e per tonne
• 100 t of sheet imported: 100 x 1.698 = 169.8 t CO2e

The Commission's example values; its example stops at embedded emissions and does not apply free allocation. Your own anode, PFC and gas figures come from your monitoring.

What Senseible does here

Senseible's CBAM Suite builds the smelter and rolling mill figures from your fuel, anode and production records. We build it from your records, check every figure in-house, and an accredited verifier we partner with signs it off. Have your own verifier? Send it to them.

• Build your aluminium CBAM file
• Verifier checks at an aluminium plant
• Does aluminium CBAM count electricity

Sources: European Commission, CBAM Guidance No. 5e, aluminium (14 August 2026), section 4, Tables 4-1 to 4-3

Last reviewed 2026-11-01.