This year's government work report has a series of eye-catching "first mentions" when deploying low-carbon green development and new energy construction.
The 2026 government work report included "future energy" in the list of future industry cultivation for the first time, and ranked first, proposing to "cultivate and develop future industries such as future energy, quantum technology, embodied intelligence, brain-computer interface, and 6G".
In addition, this year's government work report proposed for the first time to "implement actions to improve quality, reduce costs and reduce carbon emissions in key industries" when deploying "accelerating the comprehensive green transformation", announced the "establishment of a national low-carbon transformation fund" for the first time, and wrote "green fuel" into the government work report for the first time.
Not only that, the report changed the annual target from "reducing energy consumption per unit of GDP" to "reducing carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP" for the first time, which is the first time that the carbon emission intensity index has become an annual binding indicator of government work, marking the official switch from "dual control of energy consumption" to "dual control of carbon emissions".
Dong Zhanfeng, director of the Policy Institute of the Environmental Planning Institute of the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, told the Beijing News Zero Carbon Research Institute that the expression of the government work report is very meaningful, and each new formulation releases a unique policy signal.
The first mention of "future energy": energy transformation has risen to the national core strategy
Dong Zhanfeng said that "future energy" has released a signal to elevate energy transformation to the core strategy of the country's future industry. Energy is not only the "basic guarantee" of economic development, but also the "strategic commanding heights" of national scientific and technological competition and industrial layout, which is related to the overall situation of sustainable development strategy.
He further explained that the technical connotation of "future energy" includes cutting-edge energy technologies that are not yet fully mature and have not yet achieved large-scale commercialization, but are very likely to reconstruct the future energy pattern, which are no longer limited to the improvement of existing energy forms such as coal, oil or traditional photovoltaics, but pursue fundamental disruptive innovations, such as controlled nuclear fusion, high-efficiency photovoltaic technology, new energy storage and other future energy directions, so as to provide a new path for building a clean, low-carbon, safe and efficient energy system.
The first mention of "improving quality, reducing costs and reducing carbon": from "external constraints" to "endogenous power"
In the past, we were familiar with "energy conservation and carbon reduction", why is "carbon reduction" juxtaposed with "quality improvement" and "cost reduction" this year?
"This is a very meaningful change in expression." Dong Zhanfeng pointed out that this means that the country has organically integrated the three goals of quality improvement, cost reduction and carbon reduction, promoted the coordination of three-dimensional goals, and achieved organic unity.
Dong Zhanfeng pointed out that "quality improvement" is to enhance the core competitiveness of industrial development. By guiding the optimization of industrial structure and the improvement of product added value, we will focus on the layout of new green and low-carbon tracks such as hydrogen energy and green fuels. rely on the construction of zero-carbon parks to attract the upstream and downstream of the industrial chain to build a globally competitive green industrial cluster; "Cost reduction" is to release the benefits of green economic development. Through technological innovation and energy structure optimization, on the one hand, by increasing the proportion of green electricity use and building a smart energy network, both energy costs and energy consumption can be reduced. on the other hand, by using renewable resources to replace virgin materials, effectively save raw materials and improve resource utilization efficiency, and continue to improve the resource recycling system; "Carbon reduction" is to drive the green upgrading and transformation of the development model. By strictly controlling greenhouse gas emissions such as carbon dioxide, promoting green and low-carbon technology and equipment, strictly controlling "two high" projects and eliminating backward production capacity, we will promote the gradual decoupling of economic growth and carbon emissions.
"The action of improving quality, reducing costs and reducing carbon emissions is a strategic system project," Dong Zhanfeng emphasized, aiming to embark on a new development path with higher quality, lower cost and less emissions through policy guidance, technological innovation, digital intelligence empowerment and mechanism reform.
The first mention of "green fuel": the new key to solving the problem of consumption
Another "first mention" that attracts attention is "green fuel".
On March 3, the National Energy Administration just held a symposium on the development of the green fuel industry. The meeting pointed out that it is necessary to fully understand the importance of developing the green fuel industry. The development of green fuel industry is conducive to reducing carbon emissions, promoting green development, promoting the non-electric utilization and consumption of new energy, and enhancing new momentum for development, which is an important direction for the development of new quality productivity in the energy field. The National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration have issued a series of policies and measures to guide relevant enterprises to carry out useful explorations.
Dong Zhanfeng pointed out that "green fuel" was written into the government work report for the first time, and its signal was very specific. The first is to ensure energy security. Green methanol, green ammonia, sustainable aviation fuel and other "green fuels" can directly replace traditional fossil fuels such as oil, which is of great significance for reducing China's dependence on oil and gas and ensuring energy security. The second is to solve the problem of new energy consumption. Wind power and photovoltaic power generation are volatile, and the preparation of "green fuels" such as electrolysis of water to hydrogen production just realizes the non-electrical utilization of new energy, which can convert unstable electrical energy into stable chemical energy and store it, which has rich application scenario needs. The third is to open up a new industrial track. It is positioned as "an important direction for the development of new quality productivity in the energy field", which means that the country is looking for a realistic path to decarbonization for heavy industry, ocean shipping, aviation and other hard-to-electrify fields, and further expand and innovate the industrial chain system.
The first mention of the "National Low-carbon Transformation Fund": from "financial subsidies" to "capital leadership"
The establishment of the National Low-carbon Transition Fund has released a signal of "long-term funding" and "strategic determination" for green transformation at the national level. Dong Zhanfeng believes that this reflects a major leap from "financial subsidies" to "capital leadership".
On the one hand, it provides patient capital, and this clear proposal for establishment means that it has entered the substantive landing stage. Hydrogen energy, green fuel and other technologies are intensive, asset-heavy, and have a long return cycle, and social capital often does not dare to invest or are unwilling to invest. The national fund will inject "source living water" into these long-term and high-risk areas.
On the other hand, leverage social capital. The establishment of the national fund has a strong leverage effect, and the establishment of the fund has sent a clear signal to social capital, thereby guiding more financial resources and industrial capital to follow the green and low-carbon field.
The first annual carbon emission intensity indicator: from "pipe consumption" to "pipe discharge"
The 2026 government work report changed the annual target from "reducing energy consumption per unit of GDP" to "reducing carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP by about 3.8%" for the first time, which is the first time that the carbon emission intensity index has become an annual binding indicator of government work, marking the official switch from "dual control of energy consumption" to "dual control of carbon emissions".
According to the requirements of the State Council's "Work Plan for Accelerating the Construction of a Dual Control System for Carbon Emissions" in 2024, during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, carbon emission intensity reduction will be used as a binding indicator for national economic and social development, and total carbon emission accounting will be carried out, and energy consumption intensity will no longer be used as a binding indicator.
Dong Zhanfeng pointed out that the shift from "dual control of energy consumption" to "dual control of carbon emissions" is a profound adjustment of the control logic and structural optimization, and the new model of dual control of carbon emissions focuses on the total amount of carbon dioxide emissions, and the control orientation focuses on restricting the use of fossil energy, and actively encourages energy substitution. This change has realized the transformation from "pipe consumption" to "pipe discharge", which more accurately hits the root cause of climate problems.
Dong Zhanfeng said that more importantly, this system has greatly encouraged the promotion and application of clean energy. Companies can expand their development space by purchasing green electricity instead of passively restricting production, thereby achieving a balance between economic growth and emission reduction goals. The implementation of the dual control system of total carbon emissions and intensity not only sets the speed limit of intensity control, requires us to produce less and less carbon emissions per unit of output, but also clarifies the ultimate purpose of total control and guides us towards a low-carbon future.
Source: Shell Finance