Competitiveness Implications for Mining and Metals

This paper, commissioned by the International Council on Mining and Metals, is an initial step in scoping out the links between carbon pricing policies and the competitiveness of the mining and metals industry.

Different carbon pricing policies in different countries give rise to variation in production costs. This raises the possibility that production in one jurisdiction will become less competitive than in another. As a result, there is the potential for increased imports and a loss of market share in the short term and a relocation of production in the long term, with associated economic and social consequences. This paper reviews such effects, and policies that can be introduced to address them.