CBAM, one year on: SGS Maroc confirms its expertise

Indeed, since 1 January 2026, the CBAM (Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism) has entered its financial phase: European importers must now purchase carbon certificates corresponding to the emissions embedded in the products they import. Carbon is thus becoming a direct competitiveness factor. For Morocco, direct exposure remains limited in the short term — around 3.7% of exports to the EU — but the medium-term stakes are structural, particularly for the fertiliser, automotive and aeronautics sectors, which are set to be gradually brought within the scope of the mechanism.

The main lesson from the first year of implementation is clear: the challenge is not only regulatory or financial, it is above all technical and operational. Around 80% of declarations still rely on default values, which are often penalising, for lack of suitable measurement systems. Mastery of carbon data is now becoming a condition for access to the European market.

This is precisely where SGS steps in: auditing and certification of carbon data, support in setting up reporting systems compliant with European standards, and strategic advice to turn a regulatory constraint into a competitive lever. For Moroccan exporters engaged in the transition, SGS acts as an interface between Brussels’ requirements and local industrial realities; a positioning that takes on its full meaning at a time when international trade is entering the era of environmental performance.