On September 29th, the National Development and Reform Commission and other departments issued opinions on strengthening the clean and efficient use of coal. It is pointed out that by 2030, the green and intelligent development capacity of coal will be significantly enhanced, the intensity of energy consumption in production will gradually decline, the storage and transportation structure will be continuously optimized, the quality of commercial coal will be steadily improved, and the efficiency of coal use and the level of cleanliness in key areas will be improved in an all-round way. a clean and efficient coal utilization system suitable for ecological priority, saving and intensive, green and low-carbon development has been basically built.

Opinions of the National Development and Reform Commission and other departments on strengthening clean and efficient utilization of coal

  Development and Reform Operation (2024) 1345

The people's governments of all provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities directly under the Central Government, relevant ministries and commissions of the State Council and relevant institutions directly under the State Council:

Clean and efficient utilization of    coal is an activity to control and reduce pollutants and carbon emissions and improve coal utilization efficiency in all aspects of the coal development, production, storage and transportation, and use of the whole industry chain. It is of great significance to give full play to the role of coal protection, promote the green and low-carbon transformation of energy, and develop new productivity. In order to implement the decisions and arrangements of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, ensure energy security, better support and ensure high-quality development, and promote the realization of the goal of carbon neutralization, with the consent of the State Council, we now put forward the following suggestions on strengthening the clean and efficient utilization of coal.

   I. General requirements

Under the guidance of's thought of Socialism with Chinese characteristics in the New era,    thoroughly implements the spirit of the 20th CPC National Congress and the second and third Plenary sessions of the 20th CPC Central Committee, completely, accurately and comprehensively implements the new concept of development, overall development and security, gives full play to the decisive role of the market in resource allocation, gives better play to the role of the government, based on China's coal-based energy and resources endowment, and adheres to the combination of goal orientation and problem orientation. Adhere to the system concept, reduce pollution and carbon, improve energy efficiency as the main direction, innovative technology and management as the driving force, and improve policies and standards as the support, comprehensively strengthen the clean and efficient utilization of the whole coal chain.

   by 2030, the green and intelligent development capacity of coal will be significantly enhanced, the intensity of energy consumption in production will gradually decline, the storage and transportation structure will be continuously optimized, the quality of commercial coal will be steadily improved, the efficiency of coal use and the level of cleanliness in key areas will be improved in an all-round way, and a clean and efficient coal utilization system suitable for ecological priority, saving and intensive, green and low-carbon development will be basically completed.

   II. Build a green collaborative development system

   (1) strengthen the exploration of coal resources. We will strengthen basic and public welfare coal geological surveys, encourage enterprises to carry out commercial exploration, and improve the mechanism for sharing income from exploration, development and utilization. Using green exploration technology, we should strengthen the classification and classification evaluation of coal resources and fine exploration of coal mines, and strengthen the geological exploration and evaluation of large-scale integrated coalfields, so as to provide geological guarantee for the green, intelligent and efficient development of coal and the smooth continuation of production capacity. We will strengthen the comprehensive exploration of associated resources such as coal and coalbed methane and strategic metal minerals.

   (2) optimize the planning and layout of mining areas. To co-ordinate resource endowments, transportation channels, consumer demand and other factors, according to land and spatial planning, implement the spatial control requirements of "three zones and three lines", scientifically plan the layout of coal production capacity, and strengthen the overall planning and management of coal mining areas. Implement the requirements of eco-environmental zoning management and control, strictly carry out planning and environmental assessment, and give priority to avoiding environmentally sensitive areas. We will rationally plan the development of the coal industry in the Yellow River basin and carry out water resources demonstration in accordance with the law. We will promote the coordinated development of resources, ecology and economy in mining areas, and build five major coal supply guarantee bases in Shanxi, Mengxi, eastern Mongolia, northern Shaanxi and Xinjiang with high standards.

   (3) promote the intensive and efficient development of coal. The concept of green development and the principle of intensive and large-scale development run through the whole process of coal mine design, construction and production. Promote green mining technology in accordance with local conditions. Scientific division of mine (mine) fields, reasonable determination of coal mine construction scale, scientific establishment of prohibited mining and limited mining areas, and construction of a number of large and super-large coal mines that meet the requirements of ecological environmental protection, good resource conditions, high degree of safety guarantee, intelligence and high efficiency. Strengthen the coordinated development of coal and associated resources.

   III. Building a safe and environmentally friendly production system

   (4) accelerate the development of intelligent coal mine safety. In principle, new coal mines are designed and built in accordance with intelligent standards, large-scale coal mines and coal mines with serious disasters should speed up the intelligent transformation, and those who have the conditions should realize the intelligent mining system. We will focus on promoting the intelligent decision-making and independent operation of the mining system, the efficient cooperation of the technology and equipment of the tunneling system, the realization of over-visual remote control and few people on the spot in the mining face, and the promotion and application of robots for unattended and dangerous posts in fixed places, so as to improve the level of safe and efficient production management in coal mines.

   (5) raise the level of cleaner production. New coal mines shall build supporting washing facilities at the same time, speed up the transformation and upgrading of existing washing facilities, and vigorously eliminate backward washing production capacity. Revise the discharge standard of coalbed methane (coal mine gas) and strengthen the comprehensive utilization of gas. Take prefecture-level cities as the main body to co-ordinate the comprehensive utilization of mine water, build centralized treatment and utilization projects according to local conditions, and strengthen the application of advanced technology and equipment for mine water treatment. Strengthen the classified utilization and disposal of coal gangue, and support the large-scale, harmless and high-value utilization of coal gangue.

   (6) promote energy conservation and environmental protection upgrading. We will improve the standard system for energy saving and carbon reduction in coal mines, promote the application of energy-efficient technologies and equipment, as well as the comprehensive utilization of waste heat, residual pressure and other resources, deeply tap the energy saving potential of the production system, and reasonably reduce the energy consumption of coal mine production. Coal enterprises strictly implement the main responsibility of environmental protection and ecological restoration, draw the full amount of mine geological environment management and restoration fund, and ensure that the special funds are used exclusively. We will innovate the development model of circular economy in mining areas and encourage the development of new energy, energy storage and carbon sequestration forest and grass by making use of coal mining subsidence areas and closing industrial squares, dump sites, roadways and other above-ground and underground spaces.

   IV. Build a clean and perfect storage and transportation system

   (7) optimize the coal storage and transportation network. We will constantly improve the coal railway transport network, increase the access proportion of special railway lines in large and medium-sized coal enterprises, speed up the expansion and transformation of existing coal transport railways, improve the layout of railway collection and transport stations, strengthen the construction of collection and distribution railways, and fully release the capacity of heavy-haul coal transport railways. We will improve the structure of the regional coal transport highway network, strengthen the operation monitoring and emergency disposal of the road network in key areas, and ensure convenient and efficient access. Optimize the layout of coal ports and enhance the capacity of railway collection and distribution ports. Rational distribution of coal reserves, orderly construction of coal production capacity reserves in major coal producing areas, and construction of coal storage bases in major consumer areas and transportation hubs.

   (8) improve the level of cleanliness of storage and transportation. We will continue to promote "public transfer iron" and "public transfer water" in coal transportation, and encourage the development of "scattered collection" from the source of the mining area. We will further increase the proportion of medium-and long-distance coal railway transport in major coal producing areas, build a multimodal transport system with railways and waterways as the backbone, and effectively prevent and control dust pollution in transportation. Encourage the use of closed belt corridors, pipelines, tubular belt conveyors and electric, hydrogen and other new energy vehicles to transport coal over short distances. Improve the clean and environmental protection level of coal storage facilities in all aspects of production, circulation and consumption. We will increase the proportion of green collection and distribution in coastal and river ports, and promote the regular use of shore electricity by ships docking in accordance with the law.

   (IX) improve the efficiency of coal circulation. We will promote the integrated development of coal transportation, warehousing, processing and distribution, support the construction of large-scale coal storage and distribution centers, encourage fine processing and distribution, and promote the large-scale and intensive development of storage and transportation. Speed up the application of advanced technologies such as the Internet of things and mobile Internet in the field of coal logistics, and promote the standardization of coal logistics. We will give full play to the role of a coal trading center, encourage product innovation and online trading, continuously deepen the construction of the coal market system, and promote the improvement of a unified coal trading market throughout the country.

   V. Build a pluralistic and efficient use system.

   (10) continue to control the total amount of coal consumption in key areas for the prevention and control of air pollution. Strengthen the source control of new coal projects, the new reconstruction and expansion of coal projects should meet the requirements of environmental performance A, and implement equal or reduced coal replacement in accordance with the law, and those imperfect alternatives will not be approved. Give full play to the heating capacity of cogeneration plants of 300000 kilowatts and above, and complete the shutdown or integration of coal-fired boilers and backward small coal-fired thermal power units (including self-provided power plants) within a heating radius of 30 kilometers by the end of 2025. We will strengthen the reduction of coal consumption in key areas to replace daily dispatching, early warning and work inspection.

   (11) promote pollution reduction and carbon reduction in the coal and power industry. To coordinate the thermal demand of electric power, the construction of transmission channels, the matching of new energy construction, the regulation capacity of load side, the requirements of energy saving, emission reduction and carbon reduction, etc., and rationally lay out the construction of clean and efficient coal power projects. In addition to the necessary heating units, the new coal power projects should adopt advanced units with large capacity, high parameters, low energy consumption and good regulation capacity. We will continue to promote the transformation of energy saving, heating and flexibility of coal power. We will carry out low-carbon transformation and construction of coal power, and encourage the planning and construction of carbon dioxide capture devices for coal power projects. Support self-provided coal-fired units to implement clean energy substitution. Do a good job in eliminating backward production capacity of coal power in a safe and orderly manner.

   (XII) improving the efficiency of coal use in key industries. The benchmarking level and benchmark level in key areas of clean and efficient utilization of coal will be updated regularly, new coal projects will reach the benchmarking level in principle, transformation and upgrading will be carried out for stock projects that do not reach the benchmark level, and backward production capacity will be eliminated in accordance with the law. Strengthen the tracking of coal-using technology in major coal-consuming industries, revise technical standards in time, and dynamically eliminate backward coal-using technologies and equipment that do not meet the requirements. We will implement the comprehensive transformation of clean energy substitution and energy conservation and environmental protection for coal-fired boilers and industrial kilns to promote the development and application of clean and efficient combustion technology. High quality will promote the transformation of ultra-low emissions in key industries such as iron and steel, cement and coking.

   (XIII) orderly development of coal raw material utilization. We will strengthen the application and innovation of new coal-based materials, optimize and adjust the product structure, and speed up the development and application of high-end chemical products such as new coal-based synthetic materials, advanced carbon materials and biodegradable materials. We will speed up the construction of strategic bases for coal-to-oil production. Strengthen the production capacity and technical reserves of coal-to-oil and gas. We will promote the coupling development of coal chemical industry and green electricity, green hydrogen, energy storage, carbon dioxide capture, utilization and storage, create an efficient coal conversion industry chain with low-carbon cycle, and promote the high-end, diversified and low-carbon development of the coal chemical industry.

   (XIV) strengthen the comprehensive management of bulk coal. We will persist in setting up before breaking down, and carry out the replacement of bulk coal in an orderly manner on the basis of ensuring a safe and stable supply of energy. Under the premise of implementing gas sources, we should promote "coal to gas" and "coal to electricity" according to local conditions, and encourage the use of industrial waste heat, cogeneration and other clean energy to replace bulk coal. We will steadily promote clean heating in rural areas and gradually reduce the use of coal in agricultural production. By the end of 2025, the bulk coal in the plain areas, the key areas for the prevention and control of air pollution, will basically be cleared.

   (15) to promote coal quality classification and utilization. We will improve the quality standards of commercial coal and strengthen the supervision of coal quality in the whole process of production, storage, transportation and utilization. Encourage the import of high-quality coal. Local governments and enterprises should define the minimum quality requirements of thermal coal in the light of reality, and the medium-and long-term contracts of thermal coal should have clear quality terms and be included in the supervision of performance. We will accelerate the protective mining and high-value utilization of rare and special coal resources such as oil-rich coal, establish and improve special utilization plans in key areas and promote their implementation, so as to promote the integrated development of quality classification and utilization with coal chemical industry and power generation.

   VI. Safeguard measures

   (XVI) increase policy support. We will implement the key tasks related to supporting the "dual" construction, and promote the construction of qualified low-carbon demonstration projects for coal-fired power units. We will improve and improve relevant financial policies, and guide and attract social capital to extensively participate in the clean and efficient use of coal. Guide banking financial institutions to increase credit support for qualified green and low-carbon transformation projects in accordance with the principles of marketization and the rule of law. The policy support of capacity replacement will be given to coal mines that adopt green and efficient production methods such as filling mining and intelligent transformation. Give full play to the leading role of central enterprises, and give certain policy incentives to enterprises that have made outstanding achievements in promoting clean and efficient utilization of coal.

   (XVII) strengthen technological innovation and transformation and application. We will strengthen basic research and core technologies for clean and efficient utilization of coal, encourage in-depth cooperation among enterprises, scientific research institutions, and colleges and universities in cross-disciplinary innovation, give full play to the role of a platform for scientific and technological innovation, and improve the level of key core technologies and equipment that can be controlled independently. We will support regions and enterprises with suitable conditions to carry out major technological popularization and speed up the transformation and application of scientific and technological achievements. We will carry out evaluation of projects for clean and efficient utilization of coal and actively promote the construction of technological transformation and upgrading projects.

   (XVIII) strengthen organization and implementation. The National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration shall, together with relevant departments, strengthen overall planning and coordination, carry out evaluation and supervision, and coordinate and solve outstanding problems in a timely manner. All localities should refine policies and measures in accordance with local conditions and pay close attention to supervising and promoting their implementation. Trade associations should play a guiding role and do a good job in revising standards and popularizing technology. All parties concerned should explore innovation, actively publicize and guide, so as to create a good atmosphere for promoting the clean and efficient utilization of coal.

  National Development and Reform Commission

  Ministry of Industry and Information Technology

  self-financing Department

  Health Environment Department

  delivery and Transportation Department

  National Energy Source Bureau

   September 11, 2024

Source: national Development and Reform Commission