On July 19, Wen Jiabao, Premier of State Council and head of the national leading group for coping with climate change, energy conservation and emission reduction, presided over a meeting of the leading group to examine and approve in principle the Comprehensive Work Plan for Energy Conservation and Emission Reduction in 12th Five-year Plan, segmented plan for energy conservation, and gross control plan for major pollutant discharge. The meeting required to carry forward energy conservation and emission reduction in key areas, and stressed to eliminate outdated production capacity with advanced production capacity in industrial energy conservation.
The meeting explicitly raised the focal points for energy conservation and emission reduction in the 12th Five-year Plan period in six aspects: energy conservation and emission reduction in key areas, further adjusting and optimizing industrial structures, carrying out key projects for energy conservation and emission reduction, promoting the application of advanced technologies, strengthening management of energy conservation and emission reduction, and improving the mechanism of production and marketing for energy conservation and emission reduction.
In industrial energy conservation, attention will be paid to replace outdated productivity with advanced productivity. Specifically, highlights are given to the following areas of industrial energy conservation: utilization of by-product heat and pressure in key energy-consuming sectors like petrochemical sector, economizing and replacing petroleum, industrial boiler improvement, and industrial combined heat and power generating units. As shown in the data of National Energy Bureau for the first half of this year, the top six energy consumption industrial sectors of electric power, iron and steel, building materials, non-ferrous metal, chemical industry, and petrochemical industry, remain the major driving force of power consumption in the society. It is expected that in the second half of this year, the six high energy consuming industries will raise greater demands on electric power. This makes it more imperative to eliminate outdated productivity.
The meeting stressed to develop modern industrial systems, the tertiary industry and emerging industry of strategic importance, to upgrade traditional industries by utilizing high-technology, and to construct a safe, stable, economical and clean modern energy industrial system by promoting reform of energy production and application.
It stipulated to carry out key projects for energy conservation and emission reduction, exert all efforts to do well with key projects for energy conservation, environment improvement and recycling economy. It demanded to promote the use of advanced technologies, establish a mechanism to select, evaluate and spread technologies for energy conservation and emission reduction, actively introduce, consume and absorb foreign advanced technologies, accelerate technology development, demonstration and distribution, effectively elevate energy use efficiency, and reduce pollutant discharge. Meanwhile, China should strengthen management of energy conservation and emission reduction, improve the system for energy conservation evaluation and examination, establish and implement national standards on energy-consuming equipment, encourage enterprises to set up a system of energy conservation calculation, ledger and statistics, and carry out the electric power demand-based management. China should improve a long-term mechanism for energy conservation and emission reduction, put into practice preferential taxation policies, and advance resources tax and environment tax reform. China should adjust tariffs to curb the export of high energy-consuming or pollution-discharge products.