Four departments: Support capable private enterprises to take the lead in undertaking autonomous gas turbine research and application tasks

The Zhitong Finance App learned that recently, four departments including the National Energy Administration issued “Guiding Opinions on Promoting the Innovation and Development of Gas Turbines”. Among them, it is proposed to strengthen the dominant position of enterprises in innovation. Research and establish a green channel mechanism for state-owned enterprises to procure autonomous gas turbines, and include the situation relating to the R&D, manufacture, procurement and operation of the first (set) autonomous gas turbines by state-owned enterprises into the management list of special matters in the assessment of state-owned enterprise business performance. Autonomous gas turbine projects led by state-owned enterprises to undertake demonstration applications and industrialization promotion can appropriately break through the minimum return requirements of project investment decisions. Fully stimulate the innovation vitality of private enterprises, and support capable private enterprises to take the lead in undertaking independent gas turbine research and application tasks.

Opinions also suggest that by 2030, China's capacity for independent innovation of gas turbines will be significantly enhanced, with R&D and manufacturing capabilities for complete machines and key components, and the level of performance and reliability will continue to improve. Intelligent, green and integrated development has achieved remarkable results, and an autonomous and controlled “R&D - manufacturing - verification - maintenance” industry chain system will basically meet the development needs of domestic distributed energy and gas turbines for offshore oil and gas platforms, etc. The pilot application of heavy gas turbine power generation has achieved phased results.

The original text is as follows:

Guiding opinions of the National Energy Administration and other departments on promoting the innovation and development of gas turbines

Guonengfa Technology [2026] No. 86

All provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the Central Government and planned separate municipalities, departments responsible for energy, industry and information technology, state-owned capital, and market supervision of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, and related enterprises:

In order to implement the decisions and arrangements of the Party Central Committee and the State Council, focus on breaking key core technology bottlenecks, and comprehensively enhance the independent innovation capabilities of gas turbines and the level of safety and controllability of the industrial chain supply chain, the following opinions are put forward.

I. General Requirements

Adhere to Xi Jinping's ideology of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, thoroughly implement the spirit of the 20th National Congress and 20th Plenary Session of the Party, fully and accurately implement the new development concept, accelerate the construction of a new development pattern, use scientific and technological innovation as the core driving force, guarantee energy development needs as the fundamental task, adhere to the principles of innovation-driven, application-oriented and integrated development, and focus on breaking through key core technologies to enhance the resilience and safety level of the industrial chain supply chain, and provide strong equipment guarantees for speeding up the construction of a new energy system and building an energy power.

By 2030, China's capacity for independent innovation of gas turbines has been significantly enhanced. It has R&D and manufacturing capabilities for complete machines and key components, and the level of performance and reliability has been continuously improved. Intelligent, green and integrated development has achieved remarkable results. It has built an autonomous and controllable “R&D - manufacturing - verification - maintenance” whole industry chain system, which basically meets the development needs of domestic distributed energy and gas turbines for offshore oil and gas platforms, etc. The pilot application of heavy gas turbine power generation has achieved phased results.

2. Accelerate the improvement of R & D design and equipment manufacturing capabilities

(1) Break through key technical bottlenecks in R&D design. Accelerate research on design technology for key components such as combustion chambers and turbine blades, machine performance and structural design technology, and complete machine system integration technology for application scenarios, etc., and comprehensively improve independent design capabilities. Break through key issues such as body control and network-related coordination, develop advanced intelligent control technology, and explore safe and controllable control system technology for gas turbines. Develop independent design software covering key technologies such as pneumatics, heat transfer, combustion, structural strength, etc., improve design methods, specifications and tool systems, and promote the construction of a multi-professional collaborative design platform.

(2) Improve the technical level of manufacturing and testing and verification. Develop basic materials such as high-performance superalloys, improve supporting material systems and coating preparation technology such as coating materials, sediment layer materials, brazing materials, etc., and construct a high-performance, long-life autonomous material system for gas turbines. Improve the technical level of precision molding technology for key components such as burners, turbine blades, rotors, etc., and further improve the yield rate of hot parts processing and manufacturing. Explore advanced testing technology under high temperature, high pressure, and high speed conditions, improve the autonomy rate of measurement components such as vibration, temperature, pressure, speed, etc., and key accessories such as fuel control valves, and raise the level of systematization of basic products. Establish test databases, develop virtual test technology, and gradually improve verification efficiency.

(3) Promote the establishment of autonomous operation and maintenance service capabilities. Master operation and maintenance techniques such as combustion adjustment of in-service gas turbines, break through design and manufacturing technology for key components and spare parts of gas turbines, improve the technical level of repair and post-repair evaluation of heat components such as burners and turbine blades, improve on-site maintenance processes and standard systems, and promote the establishment of standards such as heat component inspection, machine condition monitoring and life evaluation, and key component maintenance guidelines. Promote the establishment of a full-life cycle fault database, and continuously improve independent commissioning and operation and maintenance service capabilities for gas turbines.

(4) Accelerate the improvement of adaptability to new fuels. Accelerate technical research and pilot application of green hydroammonia alcohol fuel in the field of gas turbines, focus on overcoming key technologies such as stable combustion of high-ratio hydrogen fuel, low nitrogen emissions of ammonia fuel, and alcohol fuel system adaptation, step by step, promote technological breakthroughs in the whole chain from multi-fuel blending to pure combustion, achieve a wide ratio of gas turbines with different power grades to medium- and low-calorific value fuels, hydrogen-based fuels, etc., and build a flexible multi-fuel compatible technical system.

(5) Promote artificial intelligence to enable manufacturing, operation and maintenance services. Develop whole machine design, simulation and optimization technology based on artificial intelligence to enhance digital intelligence design capabilities. Promote artificial intelligence visual inspection to accurately identify processing defects, integrate key technologies such as digital twins, and establish a full-process quality traceability system on the production side. Apply artificial intelligence technology to develop intelligent systems such as combustion state monitoring and diagnosis, fault diagnosis and rapid warning, life prediction of key components, and intelligent monitoring to improve the flexibility, reliability and economy of gas turbines.

(6) Expand the gas turbine product line. Accelerate breakthroughs in advanced and efficient heavy gas turbine development technology, raise the level of autonomy for small and medium-sized gas turbines, promote the development of complete gas turbine equipment covering various power levels and diverse fuels, such as large, medium, small, and micro, and gradually form a complete gas turbine product line that meets the diversified needs of energy engineering. Promote the iterative upgrading of existing autonomous gas turbines and continuously improve technical performance and reliability.

3. Strengthen collaborative innovation and cooperation and sharing

(7) Improve the industrial collaborative innovation system. Research and establish an R&D innovation platform to support the development and verification of key technical equipment for gas turbines. Support leading enterprises to take the lead in forming innovation consortia, share innovation achievements, and establish an open cooperation and innovation mechanism for the entire industry chain from basic research to engineering applications. Support key upstream and downstream enterprises in the design, processing, manufacturing, and operation and maintenance service industry to jointly build an innovation cluster for the gas turbine operation and maintenance service industry, driven by the demand for in-service gas turbine operation and maintenance spare parts supply.

(8) Build an open and shared third-party testing and verification platform. Promote the construction of engineering test and verification platforms in an integrated manner, support the opening of existing gas turbine engine and component testing and verification platforms to the industry, encourage the construction of pilot test verification platforms based on in-service gas turbines, promote the formation of systematic verification and iterative capabilities covering components, subsystems to complete machines, promote the establishment of unified evaluation standards, create a collaborative, efficient, open and shared autonomous test and verification system, and accelerate technology iteration and industrialization processes.

(9) Promote the construction of shared databases and operation and maintenance diagnosis centers. Encourage all links in the industrial chain such as R&D, design, manufacturing, operation, and maintenance services to build high-quality industry databases throughout the life cycle, explore the establishment of a unified data security system and data sharing mechanism, and promote the joint construction of shared databases across enterprises and models on the premise of ensuring security. Support enterprises to build industry-level gas turbine intelligent operation and maintenance platforms and remote diagnosis centers to achieve real-time monitoring of equipment status, abnormal warning, life assessment and intelligent operation and maintenance decisions, and enhance the autonomous guarantee capabilities of the entire industry chain.

IV. Increase pilot applications and market promotion efforts

(10) Support innovative development and the first (set) application. Relying on the construction of energy projects such as peak-shifting power generation, cogeneration, distributed energy, emergency power supplies, long-distance oil and gas pipelines, and offshore oil and gas platforms, we will promote the pilot and promotion application of autonomous gas turbines. Explore joint ventures of “natural gas+gas turbine power generation” and “new energy+gas turbine power generation” to improve the economy of autonomous gas turbine projects through business model innovation. Encourage autonomous gas turbines to declare different batches (subsets) of major technical equipment in the energy sector, expand the number of supported units (sets) of autonomous gas turbines, accumulate more operating data through engineering applications, form a positive “R&D - application - feedback - iteration” mechanism, promote the optimization, improvement and iterative upgrading of autonomous gas turbines, and continuously improve technical performance and reliability.

(11) Encourage the development of autonomous operation and maintenance services. Encourage the development of autonomous operation and maintenance services, support the promotion and application of autonomous gas turbine control systems, support user enterprises to develop localized replacement of complete and large components of Shou gas turbines, establish an operation and maintenance supply chain for spare parts and consumables, promote localized gas turbine overhauls and spare parts localization, and strengthen spare parts reserves. Accelerate the application of autonomous components and operation and maintenance service technology, gradually expand the coverage of autonomous operation and maintenance services, and form an autonomous, controllable, orderly competition, and collaborative development gas turbine operation and maintenance service industry ecosystem.

5. Improving policy guarantees

(12) Strengthen policy support. Support the adoption of autonomous gas turbines in gas and electricity projects, strengthen gas supply guarantees, and push relevant enterprises to give relatively stable natural gas supply prices to autonomous gas turbine pilot projects. Make full use of support policies such as insurance compensation and procurement to study fault-tolerant mechanisms such as grid-connected operation of the first autonomous gas turbine (set) project and emergency response to power safety accidents, and encourage local governments, power grid companies, and user enterprises to take comprehensive measures to support the multiplicity of the first autonomous gas turbine (set) projects. Encourage all regions to formulate and improve implementation plans for gas, electricity, capacity, and electricity prices, and guide autonomous gas turbines to improve peak capacity. Encourage natural gas power generation companies to participate in the electricity market to obtain reasonable benefits.

(13) Strengthen the dominant position of enterprise innovation. Research and establish a green channel mechanism for state-owned enterprises to procure autonomous gas turbines, and include the situation relating to the R&D, manufacture, procurement and operation of the first (set) autonomous gas turbines by state-owned enterprises into the management list of special matters in the assessment of state-owned enterprise business performance. Autonomous gas turbine projects led by state-owned enterprises to undertake demonstration applications and industrialization promotion can appropriately break through the minimum return requirements of project investment decisions. Fully stimulate the innovation vitality of private enterprises, and support capable private enterprises to take the lead in undertaking independent gas turbine research and application tasks.

(14) Accelerate the construction of a standard system. Collaborate to promote the layout of hardware, software, standards and patents, accelerate the construction of a standard system and patent pool covering the entire life cycle and industry chain of autonomous gas turbines, and promote the transformation of major R&D achievements into national standards. Establish and improve technical standard systems for process testing, quality inspection and performance evaluation, encourage the development of quality certification projects, improve assembly consistency and reliability, and raise the level of standardization and generalization of key components of autonomous gas turbines. Support independent gas turbine development enterprises to participate in the formulation of international standards, promote the integration of autonomous gas turbine safety standards into international standards, and enhance the right to speak internationally.

(15) Deepen international open cooperation and talent team building. Adhere to a global vision and an open mindset, and support gas turbine companies to develop technical and capital cooperation with international superior companies. Seize the strategic window, strengthen cooperation with the joint construction of “Belt and Road” countries with complementary industrial advantages, participate in the construction of overseas artificial intelligence data centers and other projects in an orderly manner, continue to expand the international market, and deeply integrate into the global industrial chain supply chain. Encourage independent gas turbine development companies to build a full-life cycle service network covering the world to help autonomous gas turbines go overseas. Strengthen the training of professionals in gas turbine-related fields, support key enterprises and universities in the gas turbine industry chain to strengthen the integration of industry and education, improve the gas turbine talent training system, and focus on creating a group of innovative and complex high-quality talents.

(16) Strengthen fiscal and financial support. Implement preferential tax policies such as additional deductions for R&D expenses and accelerated depreciation of fixed assets. Financial institutions are encouraged to provide diversified financial services such as loans, guarantees, financial leases, and commercial insurance to eligible gas turbine development enterprises and autonomous gas turbine projects. Strengthen support for major national science and technology projects to research key gas turbine equipment. Encourage enterprises to apply for policy support such as “doubling”, reloans, and fiscal interest rates, expand medium- and long-term loan investment in the manufacturing industry, and guide and support eligible gas turbine companies to broaden financing channels through listing and issuing bonds.

6. Organization and implementation

The National Energy Administration, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the State Council's State-owned Assets Administration Commission, and the General Administration of Market Supervision will strengthen strategic planning and coordination in accordance with the division of responsibilities, guide all localities and relevant units to carry out their work, and form joint efforts to jointly promote the organization and implementation of this opinion. Relevant departments and central enterprises at the provincial level strengthen work guidance to ensure the effective implementation of important goals and tasks. All agencies dispatched by the National Energy Administration carry out their assigned supervisory duties and promptly report major issues.

Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, National Energy Administration

State Council State-owned Assets Administration Commission General Administration of Market Supervision

October 16, 2026

This article was selected from the official website of the “National Energy Administration”, Zhitong Finance Editor: Feng Qiuyi.