The State Council on May 18 issued a guideline to optimize the industrial structure of China’s building materials sector.

With the goal of returning the utilization rate of the sector’s industrial capacity to a reasonable range, the guideline mandated further cutting the industrial capacity of one batch of cement residue and sheet glass enterprises by 2020. Meanwhile, the top 10 cement and glass manufacturing enterprises will have 60 percent of market share.

In addition, the proportion of green building materials products will be steadily increased, and the supply for higher quality products will be reinforced. Also, profits for the building materials sector are expected to be increased, with the rate of profits for cement residue and sheet glass industry reaching industrial average.

To reach these goals, construction projects to expand cement residue and sheet glass will be prohibited until 2020; replacing industrial capacity between different enterprises will also be suspended until 2017.

Meanwhile, enterprises that fail to meet pollutant emission standards will be sanctioned, and serious violators could be suspended or shut down; enterprises whose energy consumption exceed the required limit or whose product quality fail to meet the national standards will be suspended for six months while the violations are rectified. If the standards still cannot be met after that, the enterprises will be ordered to shut down for good.

Moreover, major enterprises will get support to establish platforms for the integration of industrial capacity, promote a united reshuffle as well as integrate property and management rights.

In addition, the guideline encouraged promoting green building materials products that lead to energy conservation and environmental protection. It also supported developing clean and renewable energy, intelligent manufacturing and more processing of products.

At the same time, it urged implementing action plans on the manufacturing and application of green building materials. It also called for strengthening financial support to promising and profitable building materials enterprises, such as providing loans for their mergers and acquisitions.