The European Commission's CBAM Committee voted December 10 to accept finalised benchmarks & default emissions values for steel imports beginning January 2026. The parameters differentiate by production route, establishing 1.370 metric tons CO₂ equivalent per metric ton for blast furnace-basic oxygen furnace hot-rolled coil, 0.481 for direct reduced iron-electric arc furnace, & 0.072 for scrap-based electric arc furnace. These represent substantial downward revisions from November drafts. Country-specific default values include progressive annual mark-ups reaching 30% from 2028-onward. Formal publication in the EU Official Journal is expected before December 25.