Two years later, coal clean and efficient utilization has once again been included in the Government Work Report. However, unlike the 2016 phrasing—'strengthen coal clean and efficient utilization'—this year's report adopts the formulation 'advance coal clean utilization'. The shift from 'strengthen' to 'advance' signifies more than just a lexical change.

'If the earlier term implied reinforcement, "advance" now mandates that this work must be done and must be completed,' stated Liu Zhongmin, Member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, and Director of the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

National People's Congress deputy, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, and president of Anhui University of Science and Technology, Yuan Liang, emphasized that according to projections, coal will still account for 50% of China's primary energy consumption by 2030 and 40% by 2050. 'For a considerable period, coal will remain the cornerstone of secure and stable energy supply in China, and its clean, efficient utilization represents the most pragmatic choice for energy green development.'

Diversified Pathways Drive Substantive Progress in Clean Utilization

"As early as 2016, Jiang Yaodong, Member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and Vice President of China University of Mining and Technology (Beijing), submitted a proposal on advancing coal clean and efficient utilization, which received high-level national attention. Three years later, he stated: "Driven by supply-side structural reform and the industrialization of clean coal technologies, China has achieved substantive progress in transitioning coal from a traditional energy source to a clean energy resource. This is evidenced by significant advancements in safe, efficient, and green mining practices, alongside dramatically enhanced clean and efficient utilization capabilities.

As mentioned, technologies such as ultra-low emissions from coal-fired power plants, high-efficiency pulverized-coal industrial boilers, modern coal-to-chemicals, and clean-burning residential stoves with briquettes are maturing, and diverse clean utilization approaches are being widely adopted.

'We have invested nearly ¥2 billion in clean technology R&D,' stated Li Xiyong, National People's Congress deputy and Chairman of Yankuang Group. He emphasized that efficient conversion for fine chemical production and clean combustion of scattered coal are Yankuang's primary pathways for clean utilization. 'For example, addressing the vast challenge of residential scattered coal, the innovative approach of modified clean briquettes paired with new decoupling combustion stoves can reduce soot emissions by over 95% and sulfur dioxide (SO₂) emissions by 60%–95%. This achieves front-end coal purification and quality enhancement, while also controlling mid-combustion processes and end-of-pipe pollutant emissions.

Li Xiyong disclosed that the next step involves driving coal's transformation into new energy sources: 'We preliminarily plan to invest ¥1 billion in research on coal-to-hydrogen conversion and downstream hydrogen storage/transportation, as well as hydrogen fuel cells.'As the world's largest single coal-to-liquids (CTL) project, the 4-million-ton/year indirect coal liquefaction facility of the National Energy Group Ningxia Coal Industry (Ningmei Group) exemplifies clean utilization. Shao Junjie, an NPC deputy and Chairman of Ningmei Group, highlighted: 'The first phase achieved fixed-asset status in Q4 2018. Last year alone, we implemented over 10,000 technical modifications to ensure production efficiency. Excluding maintenance downtime, the average operational load has now reached 90%, enabling safe, stable, and clean production.

Basic research is like building blocks—if you place a sphere at the foundation, the entire structure becomes unstable

Despite visible progress, the pace of clean coal utilization still requires acceleration. Multiple NPC deputies and CPPCC members have independently highlighted persistent challenges in China’s clean coal efforts, citing inadequate key technological support, deficiencies in fundamental research, and entrenched misconceptions as root causes.As Academician Yuan Liang noted, "Due to weak foundational research and insufficient backing for core technologies, innovation in disruptive technologies remains lacking. For instance, carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technology still faces significant gaps in scaled, end-to-end demonstration projects, with capture costs remaining prohibitively high. Breakthroughs are urgently needed in areas like specialty coal-derived fuels, energy conversion efficiency, and water-saving processes, while chokepoint issues persist in critical equipment." This view is echoed by Liu Zhongmin: "To this day, coal’s fundamental molecular structure remains elusive. What substances compose this seemingly simple black rock? What precise molecular architectures define it? Yet we still rely on oversimplified metrics like calorific value and ash content—an approach far too rudimentary for scientific rigor.

Liu Zhongmin further explained to the reporter that a key reason for the deficiency in fundamental research lies in insufficient support—long-term investments have failed to match coal's dominant position in the energy structure. 'The reactions within coal and its downstream chains are immensely complex; changing a single catalyst can yield entirely different products. Fundamental research is like building blocks: if you place a sphere at the foundation, the entire structure becomes unstable.'""Due to technological and research constraints, homogenization and low-end competition are increasingly emerging. Taking modern coal-to-chemicals—a critical direction for clean utilization—as an example, Yang Yue, NPC deputy and Chairman of Yanchang Petroleum Group, acknowledged: 'The industry indeed faces risks of overcapacity and product duplication. When a promising product or technology emerges, many enterprises rush to replicate it. But innovation cannot be purchased nor passively awaited. If we perpetually follow others' paths, bulk, low-end products will inevitably succumb to homogeneity.

This isn't something that can be easily resolved by building a few projects or factories

Jiang Yaodong emphasized: 'Coal clean utilization is a long-term and arduous task requiring strategic prioritization at national level across technological, managerial, and systemic dimensions.

Liu Zhongmin, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering, further clarified: 'Clean utilization is not a short-sighted quick win.' It necessitates dual-track advancement: industrial policy support for technology deployment and sustained investment in foundational exploratory research. Merely constructing isolated projects or factories cannot resolve systemic challenges. True cleanliness demands rigorous groundwork—only through such foundations can iterative upgrades foster a virtuous cycle between technological advancement and industrial application.

While emphasizing innovation, Shao Junjie also stressed the critical importance of market expansion. 'Especially in product conversion, existing coal chemical products remain predominantly low-end, with high-end products and technologies largely controlled by foreign firms, forcing us to rely on imports. To address this, we must focus on core technologies—particularly upgrading downstream chemical products—to break through barriers with innovation. On the other hand, akin to the luxury goods market, the higher the product tier, the more limited the remaining market space. Thus, proactive market development is essential to avoid new homogeneous competition.'

Li Xiyong proposed that, given the successful development of clean coal preparation and combustion technologies, promotion should align with the principle of 'prioritizing electricity, gas, coal, or heat based on local conditions'. 'Under compliance with environmental standards, local governments and users should be granted greater autonomy in technology selection, allowing market access and establishing clean coal demonstration zones to maximize coal's role in energy security.'

"Li Wei, an NPC deputy and Chairman of Henan Shenhuo Group, called for enhanced public awareness of clean coal utilization: 'China has vigorously promoted ultra-low emissions and energy-saving upgrades in coal power, achieving the 13th Five-Year Plan targets two years ahead of schedule. This proves that with appropriate technology, coal can achieve clean utilization. It is time to overturn the outdated perception of coal as "crude, bulky, and dirty".'(Translated from China Chemical News)