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Make every effort to advance the renovation of old facilities in the petrochemical industry, strengthen safety foundations, and stimulate new momentum for high-quality development. The petrochemical industry is a pillar sector of the national economy; through decades of rapid development, China has established the world’s largest and most comprehensive petrochemical industry framework. However, over time, some of the equipment installed in earlier years have been operating under high loads for extended periods, resulting in increasingly severe aging issues that urgently require resolution through systematic upgrades and renovations. To enhance the level of intrinsic safety and promote the advanced, intelligent, green, and integrated development of the industry, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, in conjunction with the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, the Ministry of Emergency Management, the People’s Bank of China, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, and the State Administration for Market Regulation, has issued the \"Action Plan for Accelerating the Upgrading of Old Facilities in the Petrochemical Industry (2026–2029)\」 (hereinafter referred to as the \"Action Plan\"). The Action Plan not only represents a deepening and supplementation of the \"Work Plan for Phasing Out, Retiring, and Upgrading Old Chemical Processing Facilities\" (Emergency [2024] No. 49), but also serves as a guide for taking actions to prevent and address major safety risks in the present and for some time to come, as well as to promote high-quality development in the industry. I. The Action Plan plays a significant guiding role in the sustainable development of the industry. Based on the realities of the petrochemical industry, and by combining a problem-oriented approach with a goal-oriented one, the Action Plan provides a clear roadmap and set of tasks for the entire industry to carry out the renovation of older facilities in an orderly manner, covering three aspects: scope and timeline, procedural requirements, and support systems. (1) Precisely define the scope and timeline for renovation and upgrading to ensure targeted efforts. The Action Plan scientifically defines the scope of renovation for old manufacturing facilities: all production facilities that have been in operation for more than 20 years should be included in this process ； At the same time, those that have been in actual operation for less than 20 years but for which an update and renovation are deemed necessary based on a comprehensive assessment by provincial authorities or the enterprises involved are also included in the work register for further action. This arrangement not only emphasizes focused attention on devices with a longer lifespan but also takes into account the actual needs of some devices that age prematurely, reflecting the working principle of seeking truth from facts and adopting targeted measures. In terms of the completion deadline, the renovation work shall, in principle, not exceed 5 years. At the same time, the Action Plan encourages the \"2+36\" cities in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and its surrounding areas to prioritize air pollution control efforts and take the lead in completing the upgrading and transformation tasks, so as to provide a replicable and scalable model for the whole country. (II) Procedures and requirements for system design updates and renovations to ensure \"closed-loop management\". To ensure that the updates and renovations are carried out in an orderly manner and yield practical results, the \"Action Plan\" establishes a comprehensive closed-loop management process that includes \"conducting surveys—creating records—formulating plans—implementing the renovations—and providing guidance for acceptance\". The first step is to conduct a comprehensive survey to ensure a clear understanding of the current situation and accurate data ； In the second step, a tiered system of records is established to implement a strategy specific to each enterprise ； The third step is to scientifically formulate a plan that is technically feasible and economically reasonable ； Step 4: Carry out standardized renovation while strictly adhering to safety standards ； Step 5: Provide strict inspection guidance to ensure proper completion of the renovation. Through this closed-loop management system, it is possible to effectively guide various regions and enterprises in carrying out the renewal and transformation of old facilities in an orderly, standardized, and efficient manner. This enables true list-based management and consistent progress, thus establishing a long-term working mechanism that includes annual rolling assessments and continuous improvement. (III) Establish a comprehensive implementation support system to strengthen \"multi-dimensional support\". The Action Plan systematically builds a holistic and multi-level implementation support system from various dimensions such as approval services, standard setting, policy incentives, and responsibility implementation. In terms of approval services, a streamlined green channel has been established to give priority support to renovation projects in key industries such as refining, ethylene, p-xylene, MDI, and coal-to-methanol production. In terms of standard setting, special initiatives are carried out to improve industry standards in the petrochemical sector, with efforts accelerated to develop and revise key standards related to safety risk management and resource recycling, so as to ensure that there are relevant standards to guide upgrades and renovations. In terms of policy incentives, make comprehensive use of funding channels such as those related to the \"two new\" initiatives, technological innovation, and technical transformation reloans, while leveraging the role of relevant government investment funds and financial investments. In terms of responsibility implementation, a working system emphasizing departmental collaboration and local accountability is established, along with a system for regular reporting and supervision updates. This support system not only provides clear guidance for enterprises on \"how to make changes\", but also outlines the approach for government departments at all levels on \"how to provide assistance\", thereby ensuring that the upgrading and renovation of old equipment is feasible, implementable, and assessable. II. Actively promote the implementation of the Work Plan As a bridge linking the government with industry enterprises, the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation will make full use of its advantages, and with a strong sense of responsibility and mission, spare no effort to ensure the implementation of the Action Plan. Priority will be given to the following four areas of work: (I) Strengthen policy dissemination and interpretation to build industry consensus Organize industry experts to provide multi-faceted and in-depth interpretations of the Work Plan, and through specialized training sessions and seminars, help enterprises accurately understand the policy requirements and clarify their directions for action. At the same time, a regular information-sharing mechanism should be established to promptly gather the common difficulties and issues faced by enterprises during the implementation of policies, actively convey the industry’s demands to relevant authorities, and promote the optimization and adjustment of these policies. Furthermore, it is necessary to encourage enterprises to strengthen their sense of responsibility, shifting from a mindset of \"being forced to change\" to one of \"wanting to change\" on their own. They should proactively identify potential risks, increase investment, and raise standards, using the renewal and upgrading of old equipment as an opportunity to drive the industry toward safer, greener, and more intelligent development. (II) Cooperate in the comprehensive assessment of old installations to ensure a proper \"admission threshold\". Make full use of professional technical expertise, actively work together with relevant government departments, and carry out thorough comprehensive assessments of old installations in accordance with relevant policy documents and standard specifications. The following aspects should be evaluated focusing on: First, whether the external safety protection distances for old installations that fall under the category of “two key areas and one major issue” meet the standard requirements, and whether there are any outdated hazardous chemical production processes, technologies, or equipment that are explicitly designated for elimination ； Second, it is to assess whether the devices (process technologies, equipment, products) meet the requirements of industrial policies, as well as whether factors such as external environmental protection distances, pollutant emissions, energy efficiency, and energy consumption comply with relevant standards. Through scientific and standardized evaluation, it provides an objective basis for government decision-making and corporate transformation. (III) Promote the development of a standard system to strengthen technical support. Actively cooperate with government agencies to accelerate the establishment of a standard system that covers the entire process of scientific assessment of old equipment and its renovation in line with relevant standards. Involve industry experts and key enterprises in the formulation and revision of these standards, to ensure that there are clear standards and guidelines to follow for all requirements and stages involved. Priority will be given to the development and revision of the following three types of standards: first, standards for assessment and evaluation, such as specifications for safety risk assessment of chemical plants and guidelines for comprehensive assessment of their age ； Second are the energy efficiency and environmental protection standards, which involve the timely updating of mandatory standards regarding energy consumption limits and pollutant emissions ； Third, leading technical standards: accelerate the development of such standards to drive technological progress in the industry through standard setting. (IV) Establish technology exchange platforms to foster collaborative innovation. Create multi-level, wide-ranging technology exchange platforms, and organize various activities such as thematic forums, technical exchanges, and experience sharing, focusing on areas such as energy conservation, pollution reduction, carbon emission cuts, intelligent upgrades, and improvements in inherent safety levels. By summarizing and promoting the typical experiences and successful cases of advanced enterprises, it fosters deep integration among industry, academia, research, and application as well as exchanges and learning among enterprises, creates a positive atmosphere of competition and improvement, and drives the thorough renewal and upgrading of outdated equipment across the entire industry. Promoting the upgrading and renovation of old facilities in the petrochemical industry is not only an urgent requirement to prevent and mitigate major safety risks, but also the essential path to driving high-quality development in this sector. The introduction of the Action Plan has provided direction and momentum for the entire industry. The China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Federation will take this as an opportunity to unite industry enterprises closely, play a role as a bridge and link, and work together with relevant government departments, research institutions, and entities along the industrial chain to ensure that the upgrading and renovation of old facilities are carried out effectively. In this way, it will make positive contributions to strengthening the safety foundation of the petrochemical industry and fostering new drivers for high-quality development!