New Delhi, Sept. 8 -- The United Kingdom has formally recognised India's Carbon Credit Trading Scheme (CCTS) as a qualifying carbon-pricing mechanism under its Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), potentially easing the carbon-tax burden on Indian exports of steel, aluminium and cement and likely setting a precedent for the European Union, people familiar with the matter said. After prolonged technical discussions, the UK government recently communicated to New Delhi that it had assessed the details of India's CCTS and formally accepted it, the people said, requesting anonymity. The development comes after the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) was operationalised on July 15, while the treatment of CBAM remained unresolved and was a major concern for both sides. A government official confirmed the UK's acceptance of CCTS, describing it as a "positive" development. The official, however, requested anonymity. "Following those discussions, we have concluded that the CCTS currently meetsthe criteria set out in UKlegislation. The scheme has accordingly been included in the published list of recognised qualifying carbon pricing schemes," the official said, citing a communication from London. With this recognition, UK importers of eligible Indian goods covered under CBAM will be able to seek carbon price relief corresponding to the effective carbon price borne by those goods under the CCTS, subject to satisfying the evidence and verification requirements prescribed under UK law. This will reduce the effective CBAM liability on Indian goods, directly benefiting Indian exporters to the UK, the official said. Had this issue remained unresolved, India could also have invoked "rebalancing" tariffs on British goods under the trade agreement, the people mentioned above said. India and the UK signed CETA on July 24, 2025, under which the two sides agreed to liberalise 99% of UK tariff lines and 90% of Indian tariff lines....