BEIJING, Oct. 17 -- Intellectual property (IP) cooperation has played a role in green development pursued by China and its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) partner countries, according to the country's top IP regulator.

Data released by the National Intellectual Property Administration (NIPA) on Tuesday showed that from 2013 to 2022, a total of 3,549 invention patent applications for green and low-carbon technologies from China were filed in BRI partner countries, with an average annual growth rate of 16.7 percent. This growth has accelerated since 2020, in particular, reaching an average annual growth rate of 37.3 percent over the past three years.

Energy storage, energy conservation and recovery, and clean energy were the top three sectors in terms of the number of filed patent applications.

During the same period, the number of granted patents for green and low-carbon technologies in BRI partner countries reached 1,884, with an average annual growth rate of 15.8 percent, NIPA data revealed.

As the world's largest clean energy market and equipment manufacturer, China will actively leverage its advantages in green technology innovation to support BRI green development, the NIPA noted.