Recently, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued the "Work Plan for Steady Growth in the Power Equipment Industry (2023-2024)" (hereinafter referred to as the "Plan"). To facilitate understanding of the Plan and its implementation, the following is an interpretation of its relevant content:

I. Background

General Secretary Xi Jinping attaches great importance to the development of power equipment, emphasizing that the development of strategic emerging industries such as power equipment should be given top priority. The Central Political Bureau meeting on July 24 emphasized, "Vigorously promote the construction of a modernized industrial system, accelerate the cultivation and growth of strategic emerging industries, and create more pillar industries." The State Council executive meeting on June 16 pointed out, "More forceful measures must be taken to enhance development momentum, optimize the economic structure, and promote sustained economic recovery and improvement."

In the current and future period, the green and low-carbon transformation of energy and energy security have become the focus of international attention. Power equipment, as an important material and technological foundation supporting energy transformation and ensuring energy security, faces multiple favorable conditions for steady industry growth. From the supply side, the high-end, intelligent, and green development of power equipment is accelerating. From the demand side, domestic equipment demand is strong, and the international market is continuously expanding, creating a favorable situation for steady growth in the power equipment industry.

However, there are also some problems in stabilizing the growth of the power equipment industry. In the short term: firstly, the economic operation of the power equipment industry is affected by the delivery cycle, and the annual revenue growth rate fluctuates. Secondly, affected by the instability of the international political and economic environment, there is uncertainty in the international market. Thirdly, overcapacity in some areas has led to low-price competition in the industry, which is not conducive to the healthy and stable development of the industry. In the long term, some key components of power equipment still rely on imports; the quality of equipment supply needs further improvement; and there is a need to strengthen collaborative innovation in the upstream and downstream of the industrial chain and the integrated development of large, medium, and small enterprises.

In order to thoroughly implement General Secretary Xi Jinping's important instructions and directives on the development of the power equipment industry, earnestly implement the decisions and deployments of the Party Central Committee and the State Council, prioritize steady growth, leverage the driving role of the power equipment industry, promote effective improvement in quality and reasonable growth in quantity, and strive to achieve the main expected goals of industrial economic development, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, based on in-depth investigation and research and extensive consultation, has formulated and issued the Plan.

II. Main Considerations

The Plan closely focuses on the goal of steady growth in the development of the power equipment industry and makes full use of existing policies from various departments to comprehensively promote the sustained and healthy development of the power equipment industry.

(1) Clarifying Policy Positioning. Implementing the State Council's package of policies and follow-up measures to stabilize the economy, strengthening systematic planning for steady growth in 2023-2024 to stabilize market expectations and boost industry confidence.

(2) Emphasizing Problem Orientation. Formulating targeted policies and measures based on the principle of combining long-term and short-term goals, focusing on issues that affect the stable growth of the industry in the short term and the shortcomings that restrict the healthy development of the industry in the long term.

(3) Adhering to "Dual-Wheel Drive." Joint efforts from the government and the market, giving full play to the decisive role of the market in resource allocation, better leveraging the government's guiding role in industry development, activating market vitality, leveraging the leading role of leading enterprises, promoting the coordinated development of large, medium, and small enterprises in the industrial chain, and stabilizing industry growth.

III. Overall Requirements

(1) Guiding Ideology. Guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, fully implementing the spirit of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China and the Central Economic Work Conference, comprehensively, accurately, and fully implementing the new development philosophy, better coordinating supply-side structural reforms and expanding domestic demand, deeply implementing the carbon peak and carbon neutrality strategy, accelerating the construction of a new power system, adhering to problem orientation, goal orientation, and results orientation, and following the principle of combining long-term and short-term goals, through strengthening the leadership of major projects, ensuring high-quality supply, accelerating the promotion and application of equipment, continuing to expand the international market, and improving the competitiveness of the industrial chain, consolidating the foundation for growth in the power equipment industry and promoting high-quality development of the power equipment industry.

(2) Main Objectives. Leveraging the driving role of the power equipment industry, while considering the feasibility of the objectives, through the implementation of a series of work measures, stabilizing the growth of the power equipment industry, striving to achieve an average annual growth rate of over 9% in the main business income of the power equipment industry and an average annual growth rate of around 9% in industrial added value in 2023-2024.

IV. Key Tasks

The Plan, in conjunction with relevant plans for major technical equipment, makes full use of relevant policies in the power equipment field and proposes a series of work measures based on the principle of combining long-term and short-term goals.

(1) Strengthening the Leading Role of Major Projects. Leveraging the leading and driving role, encouraging construction and operation units of major energy projects to increase efforts in tackling key problems and procuring power equipment. Ensuring the supply of power equipment, guiding equipment manufacturing enterprises to improve the quality of supply, and ensuring the construction of national major projects.

(2) Accelerating the Promotion and Application of Equipment. Revising the guiding catalog for the promotion and application of the first set of major technical equipment, conducting evaluations and assessments of the first set of equipment in the energy field, supporting the construction of application verification platforms for the first set of major technical equipment in the power equipment field, optimizing and improving the insurance compensation policy for the first set of major technical equipment as soon as possible, and accelerating the promotion and application of equipment.

(3) Continuing to Expand the International Market. Guiding enterprises to actively expand the international market, comprehensively promoting overseas project construction, and creating overseas project brands. Deepening international exchanges and cooperation. Strengthening international mutual recognition in aspects such as technical standards, inspection and testing, and certification.

(4) Enhancing the Competitiveness of the Industrial Chain. Leveraging the role of "chain-leading" enterprises, accelerating the strengthening of strengths, addressing weaknesses, and strengthening the foundation of power equipment, cultivating industrial clusters, promoting the integration of large, medium, and small enterprises, continuously enhancing the competitiveness of the industrial chain and supply chain, and promoting the high-end development of power equipment.

V. Supporting Measures

To ensure the smooth completion of the main objectives and work measures, the Plan proposes four aspects of supporting measures.

First, increasing the intensity of coordination. Giving full play to the role of the National Office of Major Technical Equipment, relying on the national coordination mechanism and expert committee for major technical equipment, strengthening inter-departmental coordination and central-local coordination. Leveraging the role of industry associations to assist in the implementation of policies related to innovation and development and promotion and application.

Second, strengthening financial and tax support. Promoting the implementation of tax preferential policies such as the deduction of corporate income tax for manufacturing enterprises. Encouraging relevant financial institutions to provide financial services to power equipment enterprises. Leveraging the role of the national industrial-financial cooperation platform to guide financial institutions to provide precise and effective support for power equipment.

Third, creating a good development environment. Encouraging state-owned enterprises to provide application scenarios and trial environments for the first set of power equipment and to adopt a "try-first" approach. Promoting localities to accelerate the construction of a unified national market. Studying and issuing relevant regulations on bidding for the first set of equipment. Strengthening brand promotion and supply-demand docking.

Fourth, strengthening the cultivation of professional personnel. Increasing the intensity of talent cultivation, innovating talent cultivation models, and cultivating a group of high-end, multidisciplinary talents. Expanding overseas talent recruitment channels and increasing the intensity of introducing urgently needed high-level talents. Improving the talent evaluation system and promoting a talent evaluation system that values innovation and is oriented towards ability and contribution.