**A Chinese version of this blog post follows the English version.**

On 19 August 2022, the National Development and Reform Commission (“NDRC”), the National Bureau of Statistics (“NBS”), and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (“MEE“) of the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”) jointly issued the “Implementation Plan on Accelerating the Establishment of a Unified and Standardised Carbon Emission Statistical Accounting System (the “System”)” (the “Plan“).Continue Reading China Issues a Plan to Establish a Carbon Emission Statistical Accounting System

**A Chinese version of this blog post follows the English version.**

China’s State Council-backed think tank, China Enterprise Reform and Development Society (“CERDS“), alongside a number of major Chinese companies including Ping An Insurance Company, issued “The Guidance for Enterprise ESG Disclosure” effective on 1 June 2022 (“Guidance“). The Guidance is China’s first ESG disclosure guideline, and covers all companies and industries.  It follows the environmental disclosure rules issued by China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) which came into effect earlier in February 2022 (which we reported here).Continue Reading China issues first ESG disclosure guidance: international guidelines with Chinese characteristics

In December 2021, President Biden signed the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (“UFLPA”) into law. The UFLPA creates a rebuttable presumption that goods “mined, produced, or manufactured wholly or in part” in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (“XUAR”) of China, or by certain other entities in China, are made with forced

In order to implement the “Plan for the Reform of the Legal Disclosure System of Environmental Information” issued by China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) in May 2021, the MEE has issued new disclosure rules (Rules) that will require domestic entities to disclose a range of environmental information

In our blog post on 13 May 2021, we discussed the consultation papers published by the China Securities Regulatory Commission (“CSRC”) on proposed ESG-related amendments to the disclosure rules applicable to listed companies. On 28 June 2021, the CSRC published the final set of amendments (“Final Amendments”) to the disclosure rules applicable to annual reports and half-year reports, respectively, together with relevant explanations to the amendments (“Explanations”).
Continue Reading China Publishes Environmental and Social Disclosure Rules for Listed Companies

On June 24, 2021, US Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) issued a Withhold Release Order (“WRO”) on silica-based products made by Hoshine Silicon Industry Co., Ltd. (“Hoshine”), a company located in Xinjiang, and its subsidiaries. This WRO is based on information that CBP alleges “reasonably indicates” that Hoshine used forced labor to manufacture silica-based products. As a result, CBP personnel at all US ports of entry have been instructed to immediately begin detaining shipments that contain silica-based products made by Hoshine or materials and goods derived from or produced using those silica-based products. China is by far the world’s largest producer of silicon and silica-based products.
Continue Reading US Customs Issues WRO on Silica-based Products Produced by Xinjiang Manufacturer

On May 7, 2021, in connection with the implementation of China’s Securities Law, which came into effect on March 1, 2020, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRCpublished consultation papers on amendments to the “Standards Concerning the Contents and Formats of Information Disclosure by Companies Offering Securities to the Public No.2 —

The National People’s Congress of the People’s Republic of China approved China’s 14th Five Year Plan (the “Plan”) at the annual “two sessions” in early March 2021, setting forth the overarching economic and social policy directive for the country in the coming five years. Released months after President Xi Jinping’s carbon neutrality pledge of September 2020, which targets to peak carbon emissions before 2030 and reach carbon neutrality in 2060, the Plan is expected to provide a clear roadmap for achieving the climate goals.

The Plan specifies binding indicators for energy intensity and CO2 emissions intensity, which demand a 13.5% reduction in energy consumption per unit of GDP and a 18% decrease in CO2 emissions per unit of GDP by 2025. In addition, the Plan proposes to establish a modern energy system, detailing the construction of major energy projects and setting the goal of increasing the share of non-fossil energy in China’s total energy consumption from 15.8% to around 20% by 2025. The Plan also calls for regional and departmental action plans on peaking CO2 emission before 2030 and acknowledges that the country would make efforts to reach carbon neutrality by 2060.Continue Reading Key Policy Directive for China’s Energy Transition: China’s 14th Five Year Plan

Speaking at the Roundtable of the China Development Forum on March 21, 2021, the Governor of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), Yi Gang, outlined the central bank’s green finance priorities over the near- to mid-term. Governor Yi began by highlighting China’s goal of reaching peak carbon emissions by 2030 and achieving carbon

The final rules governing China’s national emissions trading scheme (China ETS) took effect on February 1, 2021. In a recent Legal Update, we provide a reference point for international investors interested in participating in the China ETS by summarizing the final rules and comparing the China ETS with a scheme that may