State Council Executive Meeting: The "Action Plan for Improving the Recycling and Utilization System of New Energy Vehicle Power Batteries" has been approved!
On February 21, Premier Li Qiang chaired an executive meeting of the State Council, where they discussed work related to service trade and service consumption. The meeting approved the "Action Plan for Improving the Recycling and Utilization System of New Energy Vehicle Power Batteries" and received a report on the work of handling National People's Congress (NPC) representatives’ suggestions and Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) proposals for 2024.
The meeting emphasized that the development of service trade and service consumption is an important measure for stabilizing foreign trade and expanding domestic demand. Efforts should focus on innovating and enhancing service trade, implementing a negative list for cross-border service trade, actively aligning with international high-standard trade rules, and introducing new measures for openness in sectors such as telecommunications, education, culture, healthcare, and finance. Active promotion of service exports and improving the international market expansion and service capabilities of Chinese service enterprises should also be prioritized. A number of comprehensive reform and opening-up platforms for service trade should be created, expanding multilateral and regional cooperation in service and digital trade. Additionally, high-quality development of service consumption should be promoted, with actions to improve service consumption quality and benefit the public, support innovation in service consumption scenarios, business integration, and industrial clustering, and enhance standards in areas like cultural tourism, dining and accommodation, elderly care, and digital consumption. By implementing both "open to the outside" and "release internally" approaches, and utilizing fiscal, tax, and financial policies, the government aims to increase the supply of high-quality services and better meet the diverse service consumption needs of the people.
The meeting also pointed out that China's new energy vehicle power batteries have now entered a phase of large-scale retirement, making it particularly important to improve the recycling and utilization capabilities of power batteries. Full-chain management should be strengthened, and efforts should focus on addressing bottlenecks, building a standardized, safe, and efficient recycling system, and using digital technologies to track the entire lifecycle of power batteries. This includes the ability to trace production, sales, disassembly, and utilization processes. Legal measures should be taken to regulate the recycling process, and relevant administrative regulations should be developed and improved to strengthen supervision and management. Efforts should be made to expedite the development and revision of standards for green design and product carbon footprint calculation for power batteries, guiding recycling and utilization through these standards.
The meeting also stressed that handling NPC representatives’ suggestions and CPPCC proposals is an inherent requirement for the government to accept supervision and perform its duties according to the law. It is also an important manifestation of practicing whole-process people's democracy. Last year, all the suggestions and proposals handled by State Council departments were completed on time, and a number of key and difficult issues related to reform, development, and the public’s interests were addressed. This year, high-quality work should continue in handling suggestions and proposals, strengthening communication with representatives and members, ensuring coordinated efforts, further resolving issues, and building consensus, to contribute to high-quality development through effective handling of suggestions and proposals.
Other matters were also discussed at the meeting.
Source: Xinhua News Agency
