Towards the "Dual Carbon" Goals, Sinopec Calls for Building CCUS into China's Voluntary Emission Reduction System

Rhea-AI Summary

Sinopec's President, Ma Yongsheng, advocates for integrating carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) into China's voluntary emission reduction system. He emphasizes CCUS as a vital decarbonization technology, aiming to bridge the gap between existing projects and the scale needed to meet emission reduction targets. Ma proposes creating a unified national CCER market to encourage participation in carbon reduction initiatives. He stresses the importance of national standards for CCUS certification, alongside potential tax incentives. Additionally, he highlights the role of chemical recycling of waste plastics in promoting sustainability within the refining and chemical industries.

Positive

• Advocacy for CCUS inclusion in China's voluntary emission reduction system may lead to increased investment in carbon reduction projects.
• Potential establishment of a unified CCER market could enhance participation and innovation in emission reduction.

Negative

• High costs and technology gaps currently limit the large-scale application of CCUS projects.
• Challenges in acquiring raw materials and an immature technology landscape could hinder recycling efforts.

Chemical recycling of waste plastics viewed as key approach in advancing sustainability of chemical industry

BEIJING, March 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Ma Yongsheng, President of China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation (HKG: 0386, "Sinopec"), is calling for the inclusion of carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) projects into China's voluntary emission reduction system.

CCUS is a key decarbonization technology with the potential to significantly reduce emission and be a key contributor on the path to achieve the "Dual Carbon" goals. While China's CCUS technology and projects are developing steadily, the scale of CCUS projects is still relatively small compared to the total emission volume, and certain gaps in core technologies, especially the high cost, are limiting the large-scale commercial application.

Ma's proposal of including CCUS projects into China's voluntary emission reduction system calls for the relaunching and building of the unified national CCER (China Certified Emission Reduction) market, so that more carbon reduction projects can participate in the carbon market and motivate companies to carry out emission reduction projects.

"In the meantime, it's crucial to conduct and publish CCUS methodology research at the national level, or accredit methodological research completed by companies and publish timely to promote the scaled development of CCUS projects," noted Ma.

He suggests amending the CCUS industry regulations, institutional and legal framework, and technical specifications to launch national standards of quantitative CCUS certification, and exploring the supporting policies such as CCUS tax preference and subsidy incentives towards achieving the goal of carbon neutrality.

Chemical recycling of waste plastics is a sustainable "waste to wealth" approach of advancing the green transformation of the refining and chemical industry and part of the circular economy roadmap to improve resource utilization rate and reduce GHG emissions. While China is carrying out technological research in sync with international peers, there are still challenges of difficulty in acquiring raw materials, lack of technology maturity and overall planning capabilities of the entire industry chain. It's imperative to establish industrial demonstration and chemical recycling industry chain as well as raw materials and product related standard systems.

Ma has proposed to accelerate top-level planning and promote companies to establish national innovation centers, continue to tackle core technologies, and strengthen commercial development and resources utilization under government guidance to further promote the green transformation of the industry.

For more information, please visit Sinopec.

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SOURCE SINOPEC

FAQ

What is Sinopec's latest initiative regarding carbon emissions?

Sinopec is advocating for carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) projects to be included in China's voluntary emission reduction system.

How might Sinopec's proposal affect carbon reduction projects?

The proposal aims to create a unified CCER market, which could incentivize more companies to engage in carbon reduction initiatives.

What challenges does Sinopec face in implementing CCUS projects?

Sinopec identifies high costs, technology gaps, and difficulties in acquiring raw materials as significant challenges.

What role does chemical recycling play in Sinopec's sustainability efforts?

Chemical recycling of waste plastics is part of Sinopec's strategy to enhance resource utilization and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

When was Sinopec's press release issued?

The press release was issued on March 13, 2023.