The “15th Five-Year” Development Guidelines for the Petroleum and Chemical Industry were released

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The petrochemical industry holds great potential for development, according to Sinochem New Network. At the 2026 Petrochemical Industry Development Conference held in Nanning, Guangxi on April 28, the \"15th Five-Year Plan Guidelines for the Petroleum and Chemical Industry\" (hereinafter referred to as the \"Guidelines\") were officially released. Ling Yiqun, a member of the Party Committee and vice president of the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation, pointed out that amid a situation characterized by both strategic opportunities and risks and challenges, the petrochemical industry still has great potential for achievement during the 15th Five-Year Plan period. The Guidelines state that during the 14th Five-Year Plan period, China’s petrochemical industry will continue to expand in scale, its industrial structure will keep improving, its innovation capabilities will strengthen steadily, efforts toward green and low-carbon development will accelerate, safety measures will be enhanced significantly, the foundation for international cooperation will remain solid, the benefits of digital transformation will become apparent, and quality standards and related capabilities will continue to improve. However, there are still four main issues: first, the country is highly dependent on foreign resources, with reliance on imported crude oil, natural gas, and potash exceeding 70%, 40%, and 50% respectively ； Secondly, structural contradictions are prominent: there is an imbalance between supply and demand in the market for traditional products, and profitability is low, with the industry’s overall revenue margin at only 4.5% ； Third, there is a lack of innovation capacity; R&D investment accounts for only 1.5% of revenue, with insufficient investment in basic and cutting-edge research ； Fourth, the task of green transformation is arduous; energy consumption, pollutant emissions, and carbon emissions rank among the highest in the industrial sector, making the situation regarding energy conservation, emission reduction, and carbon cutbacks extremely challenging. To this end, the Guidelines propose five approaches for development: first, to balance overall volume and efficiency in order to achieve effective improvements in quality along with reasonable growth in quantity, shifting from expansion in scale to an emphasis on improved efficiency ； Second, coordinate production and consumption, increase the supply of high-end and green products, and expand their application areas ； Third, integrate traditional and emerging elements by upgrading existing facilities and factories, and foster the development of new forms of productive capacity ； Fourth, coordinate development and security, help enterprises of various ownership types become stronger, higher-quality, and larger in scale, and build independent and controllable industrial and supply chains ； Fifth, coordinate domestic and international efforts to build a unified national petrochemical market, pursuing high-quality ‘bringing in’ of resources and high-level ‘going out’ strategies. The Guidelines set specific development goals for 2030 in areas such as overall scale, structural adjustment, technological innovation, green and safety considerations, intelligent manufacturing, enterprise development, and the improvement of industrial parks. They also outline eight key tasks, namely: improving the availability of energy and resources, advancing the restructuring of traditional industries, enhancing technological innovation capabilities, promoting safe, green, and low-carbon development, strengthening digital transformation and intelligent integration, accelerating the growth of emerging and future industries, comprehensively boosting the competitiveness of industrial parks and enterprises, and continuing to foster high-level international cooperation. The Guidelines state that by 2035, China will fully transition from a major petrochemical country to a powerful one in this sector. First, the capacity utilization rate continues to rise, and structural contradictions have been effectively alleviated ； Second, the product quality, variety, and structure remain stable to meet market demands ； Third, efficiency, productivity, and technical-economic indicators are continuously improving, giving it a world-leading competitive edge ； Fourth, efforts to save energy, reduce emissions, and cut carbon emissions are being accelerated, with the level of green development leading the world ； Fifth, overcome a number of key technologies that drive global trends in petrochemical innovation ； Sixth, develop a range of high-end products that are urgently needed by downstream manufacturing industries ； Seventh, establish a number of industrial clusters, parks, and enterprises with international competitiveness ； Eighth, establish a group of enterprises with exceptional energy efficiency and zero-carbon factories.