The guiding opinions will be issued to speed up the high-quality development of the steel industry in China

Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, May 13th. 2021.  The "Guiding Opinions on Promoting the High-Quality Development of the Iron and Steel Industry" (hereinafter referred to as the "Guiding Opinions") has completed the stage of soliciting opinions and will be issued and implemented soon. The "Guiding Opinions" is a guiding document to promote the high-quality development of China’s iron and steel industry.

"The basic positioning of the iron and steel industry as an important basic industry in the 14th Five-Year Plan will not change, but it must take greater responsibility for green and low-carbon development." According to relevant sources, the iron and steel industry strives to be the first to achieve carbon peaks by 2025. On the whole, under the dual control of total energy consumption and intensity, and the pressure of carbon transaction costs, it is imperative to reduce, adjust, and upgrade the steel industry.

"Industrial resource guarantee will be set to a more important position for the steel industry." "It is necessary to make full use of both domestic and international markets to ensure the supply of iron ore raw materials." According to the above-mentioned person, by 2025, the self-sufficiency rate of iron metal domestic will be more than 45%, and the domestic annual output of scrap steel resources reach 300 million tons. At the same time, 1-2 overseas-equity iron ore mines with global influence and market competitiveness will be forged, with overseas -equity iron ore accounts for 20% more of imported ore.

In addition to ensuring the supply stability of raw materials, increasing industrial concentration is the key to the future high-quality development of the steel industry. According to the aforementioned sources, by 2025, China will build several super-large steel enterprise groups and professional first-class enterprises in the world, and strive to achieve 40% industrial concentration for the top 5 steel enterprises and 60% for the top 10 steel enterprises. Meanwhile, relying on industry-leading enterprises, 1-2 world-class professional leading enterprises will be cultivated in the subdivided fields of stainless steel, special steel, seamless steel pipe and cast pipe.

Another focus of the high-quality development of the steel industry is to improve quality and upgrade. It is reported that by 2025, China will accelerate the promotion of the upgrading of steel products, and continue to improve the stability, reliability and durability of the quality of steel products, and have the percentage of the quality of steel products to reach the international advanced level exceed 60%. At the same time, China will increase research and development efforts, breaking through in 3-5 key and short-slab steel materials every year, and reducing the proportion of short-slab steel materials to less than 1‰, realizing independent guarantee of key steel materials.