China's electric motor industry still faces bottlenecks; potential in high-end market awaits exploration.

Yesterday at the "Motor and Water Industry System Energy-Saving Potential Seminar" during the 8th Ministerial Conference on Clean Energy, Jin Minghong, an investigator from the Energy Evaluation Department of the National Development and Reform Commission, revealed on-site that the next research will include motors in the "Energy Efficiency Leader" initiative, providing policy incentives; Xin Sheng, deputy director of the Promotion Department of the National Energy Conservation Center, stated that the country emphasizes a "combined approach of attraction and coercion," guiding the energy-saving design and transformation of motors on one hand, and eliminating high-energy-consuming products on the other, thereby "forcing" enterprises to upgrade.

Motor efficiency improvement achieves effects comparable to the Three Gorges Dam.

Electric motors may seem foreign to the average person, but they are actually closely linked to production and daily life. From large-scale equipment like fans and pumps to everyday items such as washing machines, fans, and air conditioners, motors are widely used in industries, agriculture, transportation, municipal infrastructure, and home appliances.

On June 7, at the eighth Clean Energy Ministers Meeting and the official Danish event "Motor and Water Industry Systems Energy Saving Potential Seminar," journalists learned that motor development in our country is still facing bottlenecks. Xu Zhiquang, Deputy Director of the National Energy Conservation Center, stated that in terms of market share in the high-end sector, domestically produced motors still lag behind foreign counterparts, with much untapped potential.

Xin Sheng stated that although motor efficiency has been continuously improving in recent years, China's motor system still faces issues such as low equipment efficiency, unreasonable system matching, severe "big horse pulling a small cart" phenomena, and relatively backward energy-saving technology and equipment levels.

Motor efficiency improvement is crucial. According to the goals proposed by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, it is expected that through the upgrade and replacement of motor products, 80 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity will be saved in 2015. This figure is close to the annual power generation of the Three Gorges Dam.

The journalist noted that the enhancement of energy efficiency also brings changes to listed companies and the industry. Dalian Motor's 2016 annual report indicates that, in accordance with energy efficiency requirements, the industry's product trend will shift from level three to levels one and two. Additionally, the increasing attention to variable frequency products, the widespread adoption of intelligence, and the gradual transition from non-intelligent to intelligent machines will contribute to an overall upward trend in industry prices.

IEA Director of Sustainable Technologies and Energy Outlook, Kamel Ben Naceur, also present, emphasized that energy efficiency has been a focal point for him. Currently, to enhance the potential of motor energy efficiency, it is not only necessary to consider the generation perspective but also to improve from the demand side in order to tap into more energy efficiency potential of motors.

"Combining Attraction and Repulsion Enhances Energy Efficiency"

Xin Sheng introduced at the scene that based on the extensive experience from energy-saving tests and evaluations, as well as energy-saving transformation projects conducted under the U.S. and EU Motor Challenge Programs, and by Shanghai Electric Research Institute and Shanghai Energy Efficiency Center, the energy-saving potential of air compressor systems is typically between 10% to 50%; wind energy systems have a potential of about 20% to 60%; and pump systems offer an energy-saving potential of approximately 20% to 40%. These three systems account for 40.7% of the national electricity consumption.

Additionally, Xin Sheng mentioned that the country emphasizes the "combined approach of attraction and coercion" to enhance motor energy efficiency. In terms of attraction, this is reflected in preferential corporate income tax policies for energy-saving and water-saving equipment, rewards for energy-saving technology transformation, and incentives for energy management projects. On the coercion side, it is achieved through measures such as the energy efficiency label for motors, energy-saving evaluations and reviews for fixed asset investment projects, the淘汰 outdated energy-consuming products system, elimination of outdated production capacity, and the electricity price surcharge system.

Mr. Jin Minghong, the Research Officer from the Energy Evaluation Department of the National Development and Reform Commission's Environment and Resources Bureau, also introduced the policies and measures for promoting energy-efficient products and technologies in China.

Jin Minghong stated that China has initiated the "Energy Efficiency Leader" initiative, which selects and announces a leader directory, provides policy incentives, promotes, or rewards leaders, and the next step will involve studying the inclusion of motors in the leader initiative.

Reporters found on the National Development and Reform Commission's official website that the "Leader in Energy Efficiency" system implementation plan aims to establish a long-term mechanism for continuously improving the energy efficiency of end-use products, energy-intensive industries, and public institutions. The National Development and Reform Commission, in collaboration with relevant departments, has formulated incentive policies to encourage the research and development, promotion, and popularization of energy efficiency "Leader in Energy Efficiency" products.