The government has adjusted its Net Zero target. Thai exporters must not miss the train.

The Thai government recently announced a target adjustment to help Thailand achieve its goals. Net Zero is 15 years ahead of the original 2608 target. (A.D.2065) is the year 2050 (2593 AD), which is the same goal as most countries in the world.

The current US president's ascension to office has brought global attention to the trade war, tariffs and various trade measures the US has announced one after another. This is compounded by his stance on global warming, which he announced his withdrawal from the Paris Agreement on his first day in office.

This, along with the cancellation of the promotion of various renewable energy sources that aim to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions, makes it seem that issues of environmentally friendly business practices or reducing carbon emissions will receive less attention at a time when everyone is rushing to solve immediate problems, such as the increase in US import tariffs.

However, nature cannot wait for people to pay attention after other problems have settled down. 2568 has become a year in which the world faces volatility from all directions, both from geopolitical problems that have occurred in many areas around the world, affecting trade and investment, from the trade war that has centered on the United States and its major rival, China, and has now spread to other countries that are allies of both sides.

Amidst the increasingly frequent and severe natural disasters, such as Hong Kong experiencing its heaviest rainfall in 141 years and nearly 10,000 lightning strikes per hour, or the US facing the devastating wildfire crisis in California that caused at least 250 billion US dollars in damage, all of which are the result of climate change.

The recent discovery of more than 40 methane leaks from the Antarctic seafloor has raised concerns that the situation will exacerbate global warming. Methane is a greenhouse gas that traps heat 80 times more than carbon dioxide. Moreover, these leaks could be new sources of greenhouse gas emissions not yet included in climate change projections, potentially creating a cycle in which global warming drives more emissions.

Measures to combat global warming, even if the US doesn't care
But other countries don't let go.

Despite the US's current stance on cooperating in tackling global warming, it is expected that the US Clean Competition Act (CCA), which would require high-carbon products such as fossil fuels, fertilizers, hydrogen, cement, iron and steel, aluminum, glass, paper and pulp, and ethanol, both produced in the US and imported, to report their direct and indirect carbon emissions, and that products with carbon emissions above the threshold would be subject to a tax based on the excess carbon emissions, is unlikely to be passed during the current president's term.

But this does not cause other countries to stop or abandon their efforts to solve global warming, as they all recognize that climate change is an urgent problem that requires joint action. Even China, the country with the largest carbon emissions, has expressed its eagerness to reduce its carbon emissions.

China's president recently announced a new climate plan for China at a global climate summit on September 24th, 2025. He stated that China aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 7-10% from the country's peak by 2035 and plans to increase wind and solar power generation capacity sixfold from 2020 levels within the next decade, which would help bring the country's non-fossil energy share to more than 30%.

In this regard, if we consider Thailand's major trading partners, we will see that measures to combat global warming that were previously announced will remain in effect without cancellation, such as:

• • Measures to adjust carbon before crossing the borderของ EU (Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism : CBAM) It will be fully implemented on January 1, 2026, requiring exporters of six categories of products – iron and steel, aluminium, cement, fertilisers, electricity and hydrogen – to the EU to report the carbon emissions of their products, verified by an EU-authorised auditor, for importers to report to the EU.

And if the product emits carbon above the EU threshold, importers will have to pay carbon tax by purchasing CBAM Certificates based on the amount of carbon emitted. Therefore, Thai manufacturers must try to reduce the amount of carbon emission in the production process to maintain the competitiveness of their products.

• • Law on Deforestation-Free Products EU (EU Deforestation-free Products Regulation: EUDR) The aim is to ban the import or export of goods that are involved in deforestation into the EU market. It will be fully effective for large importers in the EU on December 30, 2025, and for SME importers on June 30, 2026. It requires manufacturers or importers of seven product groups: cattle, buffalo, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, rubber, soybeans, and wood, as well as certain products from these products, such as wooden furniture and rubber wheels, to the EU to check and report their involvement in deforestation by preparing due diligence documents before selling the products. Violators will face penalties, such as fines or seizure of the goods.

In May 2568, the EU announced the results of the risk classification of each country under the EUDR law. Thailand It is classified as a “Low Risk” country, which is exempt from the risk assessment and risk mitigation steps in the due diligence process. In addition, only 1% of imported goods from Thailand are randomly inspected, compared to 3% from medium-risk countries (such as Malaysia and Indonesia) and 9% from high-risk countries (such as Russia and Myanmar). This is considered an advantage for Thai entrepreneurs when compared to competitors in other countries with higher risk levels.

Thailand's new step...announcing new goals
achieve Net Zero by 2050

For Thailand, there has been more progress in the transition towards Net Zero, with one of the key laws that will drive this agenda being: Draft Climate Change Act or “Global Warming Act” The draft law has now undergone public consultation and is in the process of being submitted to the Cabinet for consideration. It is expected to be considered by Parliament in late 2568 to early 2569 and become legally effective in 2569.

The essence of the Global Warming Act is to establish greenhouse gas emission standards for large industries, requiring businesses to report their organization's greenhouse gas emissions (Carbon Footprint for Organization: CFO) to establish a national greenhouse gas database. A carbon pricing mechanism consisting of three parts will be implemented:

1. 1. “Emissions Trading System (ETS)” To control carbon emissions in Thailand's large industrial sectors on a mandatory basis by allocating greenhouse gas emissions rights (quotas) for each high-carbon emitting industry.
   2. Carbon Tax System For oil, natural gas, and coal products, it serves as a tool to change the behavior of most people to shift from fossil fuels to other alternative energy sources and link with international CBAM measures to promote the competitiveness of Thai entrepreneurs.
   3. Voluntary Carbon Credit Market Initially, this will be linked to the mandatory carbon requirement (ETS). Additionally, there will be a "Climate Fund" mechanism that will provide funding for greenhouse gas mitigation and adaptation measures to assist the private sector and citizens in their transition to a low-carbon society. It is expected that after this law comes into effect, Thailand will begin collecting a full carbon tax (currently included in the oil excise tax) and will begin requiring the private sector to report greenhouse gas emissions in 2570, with a pilot ETS system to begin in 2572.

Recently, the Thai government announced a target adjustment to help Thailand achieve its goals. Net Zero 15 years faster From the original target in 2065 AD. It's been a year 2050 (2593 AD), which is the same goal as most countries in the world. and will enable Thailand to achieve its Net Zero target before China, Indonesia and Russia, which aim to achieve Net Zero by 2060.

This aggressive target adjustment marks a crucial turning point that will help maintain the competitiveness of Thai exporters and avoid the risk of future trade barriers. This is because most trading partners in countries that have achieved Net Zero targets since 2593 are likely to purchase products from companies and countries that have also achieved Net Zero targets.

The continued push by many countries to reduce global warming, coupled with Thailand announcing its Net Zero target 15 years earlier, is a crucial milestone for Thai businesses to accelerate their adjustments, including investing in carbon-reducing technologies, improving production processes and products, and providing tangible carbon emissions reports.

These challenges represent both challenges and opportunities for enhancing competitiveness. EXIM Thailand recognizes the importance of this transition and is prepared to support both green finance and advisory services to ensure Thai businesses can steadily transition to a low-carbon economy and remain competitive in the global trade movement towards sustainability.

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