ROUGHLY half of China’s steelmaking capacity would have to comply with tough new emissions targets by 2020, according to a draft plan issued by the government, the latest move by the government to clean up the nation’s smoke-stack industries.

The plan would require 480 million tons of annual capacity in the world’s top steel producer to meet ultra-low emissions standards by 2020, the document issued by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment said.

China produced 832 million tons of steel last year, compared with a production capacity of about 950 million tons.

The draft set a 2020 deadline for mills around the capital Beijing, the northern port city of Tianjin and Hebei Province, the country’s top steelmaking region, to meet the new standards.

However, the Hebei cities of Tangshan and Handan, where hundreds of steel plants are located, may apply for an extension until 2022, the document said.

It said these cities faced a “heavy task to complete ultra-low emission upgrading.”

Mills that completed the upgrading will receive preferential treatment on electricity rates and taxes, and face lower capacity restrictions during the winter, the draft said.

Last winter, steel mills in 28 northern cities were ordered to cut as much as 50 percent of production capacity to reduce emissions.

The draft plan is the latest move against major polluters in China’s anti-smog campaign, which aims to cut emissions of damaging PM2.5 air particles.

The new targets will require steel mills to install more filtering and dust extraction equipment and use a higher grade of raw materials to curb emissions of sulphur dioxide and other particulate matter. (SD-Agencies)