the issue of how to deal with climate change has been hotly discussed around the world. china’s dependency on coal to satisfy its energy needs, coupled with growing awareness about the issue of global warming makes it imperative that china takes measures to save energy and protect the environment. as a result, development of the energy and environmental protection industries has become the top priority among the seven new strategic industries, and over the next three to five years, it may even replace the new energy industry, which was given key support during the “eleventh five-year period”, in terms of significance.
new materials form the vital basis for the development of these new strategic industries. they have been leading the development of high-tech industries in recent years, and will be a key growth sector with strategic significance in the following period. new materials with superb performance are essential to helping china reach its energy conservation targets in architecture, lighting and transportation. the new materials produced in the environment protection sector can reduce pollution or cut down on pollutants during production.
demands for energy saving and environmental protection open up room for long-term growth within the new materials sector. conservation in sectors such as energy, lighting and transportation have huge market potential, which encourages development of new materials higher up the production chain as well. with a surge in investment in the environmental protection industry projected for the “twelfth five-year period”, relevant products should see a tenfold growth, and the demand for new materials catered towards environmental protection will also witness a ten to hundredfold growth. many enterprises engaging in the new materials business are set to become the new blue chips in china’s capital market during the “twelfth five-year period”.
