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Source: China Chemical Industry News. From April 20th to 21st, the first China New Energy (Methanol) Smart Industry Conference was held in Beijing. The messages conveyed indicate that, whether from the perspective of macro policies or the development of specific industries, methanol, as a raw material and fuel, holds significant practical importance in accelerating the upgrading of traditional industries and achieving energy diversification as well as green and low-carbon development. It marks the full launch of the ship known as the “methanol economy”. According to statistics from the Methanol Era Alliance, in 2018 China’s methanol production capacity reached 90 million tons, accounting for 60% of the world’s total production capacity ； Domestic methanol demand is 73.85 million tons, and China has become the world’s largest producer and consumer of methanol. On this topic, Jin Yong, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and professor at Tsinghua University, said that currently, as a chemical raw material, methanol can be used to produce \"trienes,\" \"triphenyls,\" formaldehyde, and dimethyl ether; it can also serve as a hydrogen storage material, making it highly versatile in applications. As a power fuel, methanol not only has a secure supply of resources but also exhibits good environmental properties. Due to complete combustion, CO and hydrocarbons in the exhaust gases are reduced by 55%~90%. It features high energy conversion efficiency during production, resulting in low CO2 emissions. Additionally, methanol is relatively inexpensive as a fuel for vehicles ； The key point is that the technology is now mature; methanol-powered passenger vehicles have been put into use in the pilot cities for methanol vehicles in provinces such as Shanxi, Guizhou, and Shaanxi, with good results. It is understood that 1 month ago, eight ministries and commissions including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the **National Development and Reform Commission jointly issued the \"Guiding Opinions on Promoting the Use of Methanol-powered Vehicles in Certain Areas\". The Guidelines state that in order to promote the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries, accelerate energy diversification, and meet the requirements for the development of clean new energy vehicles, the use of M100 methanol-based vehicles will be accelerated in provinces such as Shanxi, Shaanxi, Guizhou, and Gansu. This undoubtedly injects new momentum into the further development of methanol as a fuel for vehicles, providing favorable policy support. “This represents the clearest definition given by eight ministries and commissions regarding methanol as a new energy source, and it is also the best outcome resulting from more than 30 years of efforts by the industry. ”Jiang Lianbao, the executive deputy secretary-general of the National Standardization Technical Committee for Alcohol-Ether Fuels, told reporters. **Zhang Yousheng, deputy director of the Energy Research Institute under the National Development and Reform Commission, emphasized in his speech that, first and foremost, accelerating the adoption of methanol-powered vehicles is of great significance; it is crucial for ensuring energy security, promoting the upgrading of traditional industries, and fostering new sources of economic growth ； Secondly, the development of methanol vehicles is in line with the concept of green development, and their promotion and use will surely contribute to China’s sustainable, low-carbon development ； Once again, promoting the use of methanol vehicles requires a gradual approach; there should be no rush into it. To conduct in-depth research on the health impacts of methanol vehicle exhausts, it is also necessary to gradually improve the supporting service systems, and at the same time accelerate the development of standards for methanol vehicles to ensure compliant emissions throughout their entire life cycle. It is understood that the meeting also saw the launch ceremony of the Ganzhou Methanol Smart Industrial Park as well as signing ceremonies for relevant enterprises to enter the park. This industrial park has made a substantial investment of over 10 billion yuan in the new energy and new energy vehicle industries, representing the strongest response to the guidelines issued by eight ministries and commissions as well as to the efforts to promote the use of methanol in various applications.