Championing consumption for a worthy cause

By 2025, China is expected to see a marked rise in the scale of green industries. The document outlined key measures to meet the targets, including the growth of green consumption.

The government will increase its procurement of green products, and gradually expand such a system to State-owned enterprises. Besides, the government plans to strengthen the management of excessive packaging, and urge producers to comply with the mandatory standards of non-excessive packaging of goods.

Chinese-owned, Germany-rooted Scholz Recycling GmbH, one of the world's largest battery and metal recyclers, started to build a new industrial park this year in Binzhou, Shandong province, together with Shandong Weiqiao Pioneering Group Co Ltd, one of the world's largest primary aluminum producers. The plant is capable of handling and recycling a diverse range of materials.

With an investment of 1.5 billion yuan, the plant aims to process 100,000 end-of-life vehicles or ELVs annually, and an ELV pretreatment center will start operations in September. Besides, the plant will produce 500,000 tons of aluminum from recycled materials, and the production line is planned to be put into use by the end of this year.

"We have established our first contacts on the operational level in September amid the COVID-19 pandemic. We have full confidence that China is recovering faster from the necessary economic shutdowns than any other country," said Rafael Suchan, CEO of Scholz Recycling.

"The 14th Five-Year Plan is also setting ambitious industrial goals to promote a true circular economy. We believe that this will generate sustainable and green jobs that are necessary to overcome the aftermath of the pandemic."

The plant is foreseen to help reduce carbon emissions of 1.9 million tons every year, according to the company.

Scholz said it is actively working to support China's circular economy plans.

It will also establish a research and development center in Binzhou to develop its capacities for battery R&D in China, and introduce a group of research professionals from Europe to the city to accelerate green development and strengthen the network with local universities.

As China's economic growth gathered momentum in recent years, domestic supply of scrap metal has been growing. Car ownership in China has been increasing as well; so is the number of ELVs.

Scholz said with the recent enactment of updated administrative policy for ELVs, the company sees a fresh growth opportunity. The right time to enter the rapidly growing ELV segment and the metal recycling market in China is now, Suchan said.

The company has achieved a recycling rate of 97 percent in ELVs, which is above the EU standard. Scholz filters 99 percent of the metals from fine-grained residuals.

More car parks and electric vehicle battery charging and swapping facilities will be built in China, and the system for recycling power batteries will be developed at a faster pace, according to the latest Government Work Report.