The Executive Yuan has reviewed and completed the draft amendment of the "Greenhouse Gas Reduction and Management Law," which incorporates a net-zero target by 2050 into the law (the Executive Yuan plans to send it to the Legislative Yuan for deliberation and examination once it passes the Executive Yuan meeting at the end of April). The draft establishes a carbon pricing mechanism, while collection objects include domestic direct or indirect emission sources and imported products with high carbon content, and collection will start as soon as 2024.

  Under the global consensus regarding carbon reduction, greenhouse gas emissions are no longer taken for granted. Although the pricing mechanism operates in different ways around the world, it is deemed an irreversible fact that companies are about to enter the era of user payment. On the scale of profitability by domestic enterprises against sustainable development, some room may remain for consideration and discussion regarding the price of NT$300/per ton. However, with reference to the price as it contrasts to the one by the Emissions Trading System (ETS) currently in operation around the world, there appears to be little room for this price to move towards a significant adjustment downward, in the case of no other mechanism. Although two years remain before the legal enactment is specifically implemented, sufficient information is vital for the initial feasibility assessment for most manufacturers, including those from the PCB industry (including green energy procurement, cost expenditure, timetable, etc.). Furthermore, even if the concepts of carbon fee collection and carbon trading vary significantly, business owners should start to appreciate related supporting measures required for fees as they make provisions for them in their annual financial plans.