Beijing Releases Implementation Plan for Industrial Carbon Peaking
On August 1, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment issued the Implementation Plan for Carbon Peaking in the Industrial Sector.
According to the notice, by 2025, the energy consumption per unit added value of industrial enterprises with an income over 20 million yuan ($2.96 million) is planned to decrease by 13.5% compared with that of 2020, the decline of carbon dioxide emissions per unit added value of industrial enterprises is planned to be greater than that of the whole society, and the intensity of carbon dioxide emissions in key industries is planned to decrease significantly. The country aims to ensure carbon dioxide emissions in the industrial sector peak before 2030.
In terms of key tasks, the Chinese government will deeply adjust its industrial structure. It is proposed to promote the optimization and upgrading of industrial structure, resolutely curb the unhealthy development of projects with high energy consumption and high emission, and develop green and low-carbon industries.
In terms of energy conservation and carbon reduction, China will focus on controlling fossil energy consumption, promote coal reduction and substitution in industries such as steel, building materials, petrochemical industry and non-ferrous metals in an orderly manner, develop modern coal chemical industry steadily and orderly, and promote efficient and clean utilization of coal by quality classification. The government will also promote electrification of industrial energy, accelerate the construction of industrial green micro-grids and the implementation of energy-saving and carbon-reducing transformation.
In order to promote green manufacturing, green and low-carbon factories will be built. Leading enterprises in automobile, machinery, electronics, textile, communication and other industries will be supported, which will play a leading role in key areas such as supply chain integration and innovative low-carbon management. They will apply the concept of green and low-carbon throughout the whole process of product design, raw material procurement, production, transportation, storage, use and recycling.
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Chinese authorities are vigorously working to develop a circular economy. Government departments encourage local areas to use renewable energy to produce hydrogen, and optimize the structure of raw materials such as the coal chemical industry, synthetic ammonia and methanol. It will implement standardized management of recycling industries of renewable resources such as scrap iron, steel, and non-ferrous metals, and waste paper, plastics and waste tires. It will also encourage enterprises that meet the standard conditions to announce their carbon footprints.
The Chinese government says it will accelerate the transformation of industrial green and low-carbon technologies. It will promote innovation breakthroughs, transformation and application of major low-carbon technologies, processes and equipment, and promote industrial carbon reduction and decarbonization through technological process innovation and production process reengineering.
The government also highlights its active promotion of the digital transformation of the industrial sector. The deep integration of new generation information technology and manufacturing industry will be promoted. Using big data, 5G, industrial internet, cloud computing, artificial intelligence, and digital twinning, the country will upgrade the industry process flow and equipment in a green and low-carbon way.
