Full power to achieve low-emission goals

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology is accelerating equipment upgrading and technological renewal in 27 major industrial sectors, setting targets for them by 2027, showing that moving to a low-carbon mode, accelerating equipment automation and further opening up to the world are keys to China’s modernization.

Guidelines recently released by the ministry on Friday show that emission limits will be set in the steel, construction and automotive sectors. In particular, more than 80 percent of all domestic steel production capacity will be upgraded to ultra-low emissions by 2027.

The pursuit of a clean environment is more visible when we consider the joint efforts of the Ministry of Finance and the National Development and Reform Commission to subsidize factories and consumers replacing old equipment with new ones.

It also established favorable rules for those who buy new energy-efficient equipment. Other notable points include efforts to increase the rate of use of digital R&D tools in large-scale industrial machines to more than 90 percent.

With recent moves, China is ensuring the safety of the industrial chain, reducing emissions and encouraging international trade to open up more. This move is worth appreciating, considering that upgrading equipment and technology is not zero-cost. A large amount of old equipment will have to be disposed of, and dismantling it involves large labor and financial costs. It also means that a large number of people need to acquire new skills to operate the new technology.