China is the world’s largest producer and consumer of chemical products. China’s chemicals industry accounts for 20 percent of total national industrial emissions and 13 percent of the country’s total CO₂ emissions. The zero-carbon transformation of the chemicals industry is critical to the national goal of carbon neutrality and the low-carbon transformation of the global chemicals value chain. Challenges and opportunities coexist to transform this sector.

Ammonia, methanol, and ethylene will be key focuses of China’s chemicals industry decarbonization. Although they will be the main source of carbon emissions within China’s chemical industry in the future, they are also key primary chemicals with numerous downstream products and high added value.

RMI’s latest report Transforming China’s Chemicals Industry: Pathways and Outlook under the Carbon Neutrality Goal demonstrates China’s chemicals industry decarbonization pathways, including industry characteristics, demand forecast, technical and economic feasibility, transformation timeline, geographic distribution forecast, and transformation mode analysis.