Three departments including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology: Strive to basically fill the “shortcomings” in the technical equipment industry chain in key environmental protection areas by 2027

The Zhitong Finance App learned that on March 12, three departments including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued “Certain Opinions on Promoting High-Quality Development of the Environmental Protection Equipment Manufacturing Industry”. The “Opinion” suggests that by 2027, the market share of advanced technology and equipment will increase markedly, “shortcomings” in the technical equipment industry chain in key areas will be basically completed, and “long board” technical equipment will form an advantageous pattern of domestic dominance and overseas expansion. By 2030, the “shortcomings” of the environmental technology and equipment industry chain will be autonomous and controllable, the advantages of longboard technology and equipment will be further expanded, and the environmental protection equipment manufacturing industry will be fully upgraded from traditional pollution control to green, low-carbon, and circular development.

The original text is as follows:

“Certain Opinions on Promoting the High-Quality Development of the Environmental Protection Equipment Manufacturing Industry” was issued and implemented

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, and the General Administration of Market Regulation recently jointly issued “Certain Opinions on Promoting High-Quality Development of the Environmental Protection Equipment Manufacturing Industry” (Ministry of Industry and Information Technology Joint Section (2025) No. 49, hereinafter referred to as “Opinions”), focusing on promoting the sustainable, healthy and stable development of the environmental equipment manufacturing industry and building a trillion-level industry with international competitive advantages. The “Opinion” suggests that by 2027, the market share of advanced technology and equipment will increase markedly, “shortcomings” in the technical equipment industry chain in key areas will be basically completed, and “long board” technical equipment will form an advantageous pattern of domestic dominance and overseas expansion. By 2030, the “shortcomings” of the environmental technology and equipment industry chain will be autonomous and controllable, the advantages of longboard technology and equipment will be further expanded, and the environmental protection equipment manufacturing industry will be fully upgraded from traditional pollution control to green, low-carbon, and circular development.

The “Opinion” proposes 12 policies and measures in four areas: strengthening research on key technologies, speeding up the promotion of advanced technology, cultivating new momentum for industry development, and optimizing the industrial development environment. Among them, strengthening key technology research will focus on supply chain blockages in the industrial chain, carry out a three-year upgrade of major environmental protection technology and equipment, and further promote the application of next-generation information technology such as 5G and artificial intelligence in the fields of environmental protection equipment design and manufacturing, pollution control, and environmental monitoring. Optimizing the industrial development environment will guide environmental protection equipment companies to work hard in their respective segments, and build a number of enterprises with standardized industry conditions, specialized and innovative “little giant” enterprises, and individual champions in the manufacturing industry. Promote the transformation of leading enterprises from providing environmental protection technology and equipment in a single field to “product+service” supply in multiple fields, strengthen industry standards and guidance, and promote the establishment of a fair competition, healthy and orderly market development environment.

Accelerating the development of the environmental protection equipment manufacturing industry is not only an important guarantee for promoting the green transformation and upgrading of traditional manufacturing industries, but also an urgent need to cultivate and expand strategic emerging industries. After decades of development, the scale of China's environmental protection equipment manufacturing industry continues to grow. According to estimates by relevant industry associations, the total output value of the environmental protection equipment manufacturing industry in 2024 is about 920 billion yuan, which is about 240 times higher than 3.8 billion yuan in 1990. The development of environmental protection technology shows the characteristics of “overall parallel operation and local leadership”. The complete machine and complete equipment basically meet domestic pollution control needs.

Some opinions of the three departments including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology on promoting the high-quality development of the environmental equipment manufacturing industry

Ministry of Industry and Information Technology Joint Section [2025] No. 49

All provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the Central Government and planned separate municipalities, and departments in charge of industry, informatization, ecological environment, and market supervision of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps:

The environmental protection equipment manufacturing industry is an important foundation for promoting a green and low-carbon transformation, and a technical guarantee for building a beautiful China. In order to consolidate and enhance the competitive advantage of the entire environmental equipment industry chain and promote the high-quality development of the environmental equipment manufacturing industry, the following opinions are put forward.

I. General Requirements

Guided by Xi Jinping's ideology of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, we thoroughly implement the spirit of the 20th National Congress and the Second and Third Plenums of the 20th CPC Central Committee, fully implement Xi Jinping's ideology of ecological civilization, closely integrate with the development needs of environmental protection equipment to comprehensively promote the construction of a beautiful China, adhere to scientific and technological innovation, strengthen technology application, accelerate industry transformation, optimize the development environment, and provide strong equipment support for the overall green transformation of economic and social development.

The main goal is to strive to significantly increase the market share of advanced technology and equipment by 2027, the standard system is more complete, the “shortcomings” in the technical equipment industry chain in key areas are basically completed, the “long board” technology and equipment forms an advantageous pattern of domestic dominance and overseas expansion, and a relatively complete environmental protection equipment supply system. By 2030, the “shortcomings” of the environmental technology and equipment industry chain will be autonomous and controllable, the advantages of longboard technology and equipment will be further expanded, the scale, product quality and comprehensive benefits of the environmental protection equipment manufacturing industry will be further enhanced, a number of leading enterprises with strong industrial innovation capabilities and comprehensive competitiveness will be cultivated, and the environmental protection equipment manufacturing industry will be fully upgraded from traditional pollution control to green, low-carbon and circular development.

II. Promote research and development of key environmental protection technology and equipment

(1) Develop key technologies to “take the lead”. Focus on the blockages in the industrial chain supply chain, implement a three-year upgrade of major environmental protection technology and equipment, and carry out a “facelift” around key technologies such as high-salt wastewater treatment and reuse, dry flue gas purification, and persistent organic matter identification and monitoring, breaking through the shortcomings of a number of basic components, materials, agents and control devices such as special sensors and low temperature denitrification catalysts, and speeding up complete technical equipment research.

(2) Establish an environmental equipment manufacturing innovation center. Optimize strategic scientific and technological strength in the field of environmental protection equipment, promote advantageous enterprises, universities and research institutes to jointly build environmental protection equipment manufacturing innovation centers, integrate relevant innovative resources through the “company+alliance” organizational model, lay out forward-looking and disruptive technology development and application, provide R&D diffusion and initial commercialization services for common key technologies for industry development, and drive green and low-carbon transformation of traditional processes and products.

(3) Build a pilot platform for environmental protection equipment. Facing fields such as high-performance water treatment membranes, volatile organic matter treatment equipment, and new pollutant testing equipment that are urgently needed for pollution prevention and control, leading enterprises are guided to take the lead in building and moderately opening high-level pilot platforms to provide specialized services such as technical research and development transformation, product performance testing, instrument and equipment sharing, and equipment application verification, so as to raise the level of transformation and industrialization of scientific and technological achievements.

3. Accelerate the promotion and application of advanced environmental protection technology and equipment

(4) Explore the establishment of an evaluation mechanism for environmental protection equipment users. User enterprises are encouraged to comprehensively consider indicators such as performance, efficiency, energy consumption, water consumption, longevity, operation and maintenance of environmental protection equipment in procurement to guide high-quality and affordable procurement, and avoid winning the bid due to a single price factor. Guide third party agencies to publish recommended lists of environmental protection technology and equipment based on user evaluations to promote the large-scale promotion and application of high-quality equipment.

(5) Strengthen the connection between supply and demand for environmental technology and equipment. Regularly revise the “Catalogue of Major Environmental Protection Technology and Equipment Encouraged by the State” and the “National Pollution Prevention and Control Technology Guidance Catalogue” to establish effective communication channels between environmental protection equipment manufacturers and users in need. Strengthen publicity and promotion of outstanding cases of key projects. Strengthen industrial and financial cooperation in the field of environmental protection equipment, and promote financial resources to accurately meet corporate financing needs. Industry associations, park enterprises, universities, etc. are encouraged to carry out activities such as technical exchanges and supply and demand docking of advanced environmental protection equipment.

IV. Cultivating new momentum for industry development

(6) Promote the transformation of pollutant control to synergetic efficiency of pollution reduction and carbon reduction. Promote air treatment, sewage treatment, and solid waste treatment equipment enterprises to develop new process technology, develop new multi-pollutant treatment technology and equipment, help achieve collaborative reduction of pollutants such as sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, fine particulate matter, volatile organic compounds, etc., improve the energy efficiency and carbon efficiency level of equipment, promote waste resource utilization, and encourage enterprises to expand greenhouse gas emission reduction, new pollutant treatment, and emerging solid waste disposal businesses.

(7) Support superior environmental protection equipment companies to “go global”. Promote environmental protection equipment enterprises to actively construct complete international energy saving and environmental protection equipment projects, and expand exports of environmental protection technology and equipment. Promote the establishment of international environmental equipment science and technology organizations, support domestic enterprises to participate in international environmental equipment science and technology cooperation programs, and carry out overseas cooperative investment. Support enterprises that are in a position to do so to extend the industrial chain, build multinational enterprises integrating international contracting, overseas R&D, cross-border e-commerce, and product trade, enhance the international influence and competitiveness of products, and promote “going global” of environmental technology and equipment.

(8) Raise the level of high-end intelligent greening of traditional environmental protection equipment. Make full use of next-generation information technology such as artificial intelligence, big data, cloud computing, and the industrial Internet to raise the level of digital intelligence and greening in all aspects of environmental protection equipment design, production, use, operation and maintenance. Develop a number of environmentally friendly robots, intelligent pollution control equipment, and remote operation and maintenance equipment in the fields of smart water, pipeline cleaning, environmental monitoring, etc., and accelerate the promotion and application of advanced technologies such as simulation software, virtual reality, and digital twins.

5. Optimizing the Industrial Development Environment

(9) Strengthen policy guidance. Implement policies related to large-scale equipment renewal and consumer goods trade-in, and support the upgrading of eligible environmental equipment projects. Support environmental technology and equipment research and pilot platform construction through national key research and development plans, etc. Implement insurance compensation policies for the first (set) of major technical equipment and the first batch of new materials, and support the promotion and application of advanced environmental protection technology and equipment. Study government procurement support policies for environmental protection equipment products in due course. Strengthen efforts to cultivate individual champion enterprises and “little giant” enterprises specializing in the field of environmental protection equipment in the manufacturing industry.

(10) Improve the environmental protection equipment standard system. Improve the product standard system in the field of environmental protection equipment segmentation, and promote the serialization and integration of non-standard products. Establish an environmental equipment industry standardization organization. Formulate mandatory standards for energy consumption, water consumption, operation and maintenance, life, safety, etc. Strengthen the development of measurement technical specifications such as online and on-site monitoring instruments that are urgently needed in key areas of environmental protection equipment. Organize leading enterprises to participate in the revision of the international standard system to improve the success rate of Chinese enterprises applying for international standard projects. Actively participate in the development of international standards for superior equipment such as desulfurization, denitrification and dust removal, municipal sewage treatment, and large-scale waste incinerators.

(11) Strengthen talent building. Relying on platforms such as the National Excellent Engineer Practice Base, environmental protection equipment engineers and “craftsmen” training is carried out. Use manufacturing talent support programs, etc. to support the training of innovative entrepreneurs, advanced manufacturing technical talents, and advanced basic process talents in the field of environmental protection equipment, and promote colleges and universities to increase the training of environmental technology and equipment engineers and technicians from the perspective of enterprise talent customization. Industry associations and standardization organizations are encouraged to carry out professional training to serve the overseas market expansion of enterprises.

(12) Optimizing the market environment. Improve product quality and other relevant laws and regulations, and strengthen the quality supervision and management of environmental protection equipment. Formulate and revise the environmental equipment manufacturing industry standard conditions to guide the development of industry standards. Play the role of green finance, support eligible environmental protection equipment companies to issue green bonds, and expand financing channels. Use relevant special funds, government investment funds, etc. to increase support for environmental protection equipment technological innovation, intelligent manufacturing, and service transformation, and create a good financial ecosystem to support industrial development.

Ministry of Industry and Information Technology

Ministry of Ecology and Environment

General Administration of Market Regulation

March 4, 2025

This article was selected from the “Ministry of Industry and Information Technology's official website”, Zhitong Finance Editor: Xu Wenqiang.