On March 5, 2026, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) officially announced the establishment of the Green and Low-Carbon Standardization Technical Committee. The new committee, designated MIIT/TC9, is tasked with developing comprehensive and fundamental sector standards in the green and low-carbon sectors. Its scope covers standard formulation and revision across industrial fields under MIIT’s jurisdiction.
The inaugural committee consists of 71 members drawn from government bodies, research institutes, testing organizations, enterprises, and universities, ensuring a multi-dimensional and inclusive standardization framework. The secretariat of the committee is hosted by the China Electronics Standardization Institute (CESI). Notably, the committee includes Siemens (China) as the foreign-invested enterprise participant among its members.
The establishment of MIIT/TC9 serves as a key implementation measure following the “Implementation Plan of Further Promoting the Green and Low Carbon Standardization Works for Industry and Information Technology Sectors” issued by MIIT on June 26, 2025 (See more details from our previous news). That Plan outlines three major areas guiding the committee’s priorities:
- Standards for Urgent Needs – carbon footprint accounting, industrial solid waste utilization, and traction battery recycling.
- Standards for Innovation Leadership – green microgrids, clean hydrogen, digital energy-carbon management, and more.
- Standards for Upgrading – energy/water conservation and green manufacturing benchmark systems.
In alignment with the three priority areas above, MIIT/TC9 plays a complementary role to the existing national committee SAC/TC548 (Carbon Management). Supervised by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, SAC/TC548 covers a broad cross‑sectoral scope, including carbon emission management terminology, statistics, and monitoring, regional carbon emission inventory compilation, corporate‑and project‑level carbon accounting and reporting, low‑carbon products, carbon capture and storage, and carbon neutrality. In contrast, MIIT/TC9 focuses on sector standards under MIIT’s purview, such as product carbon footprint rules for automobiles, batteries, and electronics, recycling standards for traction batteries and industrial solid waste utilization, and evaluation criteria for green factories and supply chains. Thus, while SAC/TC548 provides the “general carbon management framework” across the economy, MIIT/TC9 delivers the “sectoral implementation handbooks” for China’s industrial sectors. This division ensures macro‑level consistency and sector‑level feasibility, supporting China’s carbon peak and neutrality goals.
The newly established MIIT/TC9 marks a pivotal shift in China’s industrial decarbonization from broad policy guidance to standardized implementation. For European stakeholders, the inclusion of Siemens (China) signals an openness to foreign participation. Consequently, European firms should leverage their technological expertise to actively engage in standard-setting and promote international alignment, transforming regulatory compliance into a competitive advantage.
Source: https://wap.miit.gov.cn/jgsj/kjs/wjfb/art/2026/art_d264979c712149759a1626ff17000c05.html
