On June 11, 2026, the National Technical Committee for Carbon Management Standardization (SAC/TC548) convened its national standards review and 2025 annual work conference in Beijing. The meeting brought together over 50 committee members, industry experts, and senior officials from key government departments to assess progress and chart the course for China’s carbon standardization efforts in the critical “15th Five-Year Plan” period (2026–2030).
In her address, Zhu Meina, Deputy Director-General of the Department of Standards Technical Management at the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR), commended SAC/TC548’s achievements over the past year. She underscored that China’s ecological civilization construction has entered a pivotal phase centered on carbon reduction, with a strategic shift from dual control over the total amount and intensity of energy consumption to dual control over the total amount and intensity of carbon emissions. She urged the committee to refine the green and low-carbon standards framework, accelerate the development of supporting standards for carbon emission dual control, deepen international cooperation to enhance China’s voice in global carbon governance, and strengthen cross-ministerial and cross-sectoral coordination to ensure standard consistency.
A key highlight of the meeting was the official announcement of committee leadership adjustments. Liu Yang, Deputy Director-General of the Department of Climate Change at the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE), was appointed as the new Chairperson, with Xing Baiying also from MEE named as a member and additional Deputy Secretary-General.
Li Zhiping, Vice President of China National Institute of Standardization (CNIS), speaking on behalf of the secretariat, reaffirmed the institute’s commitment to leveraging standardization as a foundational and strategic tool to support the national “15th Five-Year Plan” priorities. Sun Liang, SAC/TC548’s Secretary-General, presented the 2025 work summary and outlined proposed initiatives for 2026. In his concluding remarks, Chairperson Liu Yang called for SAC/TC548 to strengthen its working mechanisms, accelerate standard development in line with the implementation of the forthcoming Ecological Environment Code, advance the development of greenhouse gas and climate change standards as outlined in the 15th Five-Year Plan, and reinforce the supporting role of the standards system in climate response efforts.
Moreover, the committee reviewed and approved two national standards:
- 20243771-T-467 Greenhouse gases – Quantification method and requirements for carbon footprint of products-Photovoltaic module
- 20243774-T-467 Greenhouse gases – Quantification method and requirements for carbon footprint of products-Photovoltaic inverters
These standards, which will soon be submitted for final approval, are designed to guide carbon footprint management for China’s “new three” export products (solar panels, lithium-ion batteries, and electric vehicles).
The conference served as a comprehensive review of 2025 achievements and a strategic roadmap for the upcoming year, marking a new starting point for SAC/TC548 to drive green and low-carbon transformation and support the nation’s ambitious “dual carbon” goals of reaching peak carbon emissions by 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2060.
China’s introduction of national-level carbon footprint quantification standards for photovoltaic modules and inverters carries implications for European stakeholders. EU policymakers face the need for technical alignment between China’s accounting methods and the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), as discrepancies or non-recognition may otherwise arise. For European importers, more standardized and transparent carbon footprint data from Chinese manufacturers facilitates compliance with reporting obligations, yet also may entail administrative and technical costs in adapting to a different standards framework.
Source: https://www.cnis.ac.cn/bydt/zhxw/202606/t20260618_63201.html
