Industry is the main battlefield for energy conservation and carbon reduction in China, and it is also the key to supporting the comprehensive green and low-carbon transformation of China’s economy and society. Recently, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued the “14th Five Year Plan for Industrial Green Development”, which stands at the strategic height of ecological civilization construction, high-quality development, manufacturing power, and network power construction. It comprehensively deploys the industrial green development during the “14th Five Year Plan” period, clarifies development goals and key tasks and measures, and will have a profound impact on the green transformation of the industrial sector and the promotion of carbon peak and carbon neutrality in the next five years.
1、 Industrial green development is the key to promoting comprehensive green transformation of economic and social development, and fulfilling carbon peak and carbon neutrality commitments
The industrial energy consumption in China accounts for over 65% of the total energy consumption in the country. In 2020, industrial electricity consumption accounted for 67% of the total social electricity consumption, and industrial water consumption accounted for about 17% of the total water consumption. It is one of the important areas of energy resource consumption. In recent years, positive results have been achieved in the green development of industry. The pace of green transformation of traditional industries has accelerated, and the growth momentum of green and low-carbon industries is strong. The green manufacturing system has initially formed. During the 13th Five Year Plan period, the energy consumption per unit of added value of industrial enterprises above designated size has decreased by about 16%, and the water consumption per unit of added value of industrial enterprises has decreased by about 40%. Key large and medium-sized enterprises have reached the world’s advanced level in terms of comprehensive energy consumption per ton of steel and comprehensive exchange electricity consumption of raw aluminum, However, compared with the construction of a strong manufacturing country, ecological civilization, and especially the implementation of the “dual carbon” goals, there are still many challenges to be faced.

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Firstly, China is still in the stage of deepening industrialization and urbanization, and the task of developing the economy and improving people’s livelihoods is still very heavy. In 2020, China’s per capita GDP had just reached $10000. According to the BP World Energy Statistical Yearbook (2021), in 2020, China’s per capita primary energy consumption was only 38% of that of the United States, which was 30% and 25% lower than Germany and Japan, respectively. By 2035, the per capita GDP should reach the level of moderately developed countries. The stage of development in our country determines that we will continue to maintain a rigid demand for energy and resource consumption growth for a long period of time. The second issue is that the industrial structure is biased towards coal and the energy structure is biased towards coal, which has not undergone a fundamental transformation. The proportion of traditional industries such as steel, building materials, petrochemicals, chemicals, and non-ferrous metals is still relatively high. Non fossil energy consumption in China accounts for less than 16%, while coal accounts for 56.8% of energy consumption. The industrial and energy structures have led to significantly higher energy input costs and greater difficulty in reducing carbon emissions for China’s economic growth. Thirdly, there is a lack of green and low-carbon technology equipment. Breakthroughs are urgently needed in new low-carbon metallurgy, substitution of cement raw materials and fuels, and production of chemicals from renewable resources. The research and application of cross disciplinary comprehensive technologies such as carbon capture, utilization and storage, and efficient energy storage need to be strengthened. The fourth point is that the green economy has become the pinnacle of global industrial competition, and the risk of green trade barriers has increased.
In the face of new situations, tasks, and requirements, green industrial development is not only a necessary path to promote the construction of a manufacturing power and achieve high-quality industrial development, but also a strategic choice to actively respond to the new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation. It is also the top priority to promote comprehensive green transformation of the economy and society, and fulfill the commitment to carbon peak and carbon neutrality.