The Industrial Energy Consumers of America (IECA) on Tuesday urged Congress to not impose any direct or indirect climate-related costs on U.S. manufacturers until an import fee is implemented on carbon-intensive goods.

Energy Consumption

A carbon border adjustment mechanism, or CBAM, recently was proposed by the European Union (EU). A CBAM puts an estimated greenhouse gas (GHG) price on imported goods to equalize costs. It also is designed to prevent industries from moving “offshore,” i.e. to other places where it may be less expensive to emit carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.

“Imposing costs without an enforceable CBAM will result in GHG leakage and shift manufacturing production, jobs and GHG emissions offshore, which achieves nothing environmentally,” said CEO Paul N. Cicio in the...