Multinational Companies Increase Green Investment in China

Illustration of green energy. (Pexels).

JAKARTA - A number of multinational companies are expanding green investments in China as the country accelerates its energy transition and low-carbon development. Evonik, AkzoNobel, BASF, Syensqo to Everllence see China not only as a market, but also a place to develop and test new technologies.

China Daily, quoted on Monday, August 10, said the direction was becoming clearer in the 15th Five-Year Plan for the period 2026-2030, which encourages accelerating green transformation in economic and social development.

AkzoNobel China President Karen Yin said the policy strengthened the company's confidence in the long-term prospects of the Chinese market.

"Our long-term commitment to the Chinese market shows a strategic shift, from being merely an investor to an innovation partner," Yin said.

Evonik China President Xia Fuliang saw a similar change. According to Xia, China is no longer just a large market or manufacturing base, but also a meeting place for innovation, infrastructure, experts, and industrial ecosystems.

Foreign companies are now targeting low-carbon technology, circular economy, and industrial energy efficiency.

BASF, for example, is driving low-carbon operations at the Zhanjiang Verbund complex through large-scale purchases of renewable energy. Schneider Electric is expanding its energy management, automation, and digitization solutions.

Siemens is also expanding its presence in China through smart electrical system solutions, green manufacturing, and energy optimization.

Evonik is adding new projects in the first half of 2026. The German specialty chemicals company is operating a new hydrogen peroxide plant in Leshan, expanding its specialty amine production facility in Nanjing, and opening a new technology center for the development of green hydrogen.

"These projects reflect our confidence in the potential of the Chinese market and its role as a source of innovation and transformation for global companies," Xia said, as quoted by China Daily.

Syensqo also sees opportunities from the size of the market, the rapid increase in the industry, and local experts.

The Belgian specialty chemicals company has been operating in China for four decades, has five industrial sites, and the company's third largest research and innovation center globally in Shanghai.

Syensqo's Chief Asia Officer Chen Pu told China Daily that demand in China is moving towards more advanced, sustainable, and high-performance solutions.

"We want to capture opportunities from trends such as electrification, weight reduction, advanced connectivity, and more sustainable sources of raw materials by innovating locally," said Chen.

China Daily also noted that opportunities for a green transition are beginning to be seen in the shipping sector.

Senior Vice President and Head of Asia-Pacific Everllence Sarath Prasannan said China led the world's new ship orders based on deadweight tonnage in the first quarter of 2026. Deadweight tonnage is the maximum load capacity that a ship can carry.

Green vessels accounted for 80.2 percent of new contracts.

In June 2026, Everllence completed the conversion of the Seaspan Yangtze into a methanol dual-fuel vessel at Shanghai COSCO Heavy Industry.

The work was completed in three months. According to Everllence, the conversion made the ship's emission index 55 percent lower than the international benchmark.

Digital technology is also included in the transition. At the Syensqo center in Shanghai, artificial intelligence is used in research and development.

"AI helps teams in the analysis, testing, and optimization of product solutions," said Chen. "AI is not a substitute for researchers, but a tool to help them solve more complex problems and find new ideas faster."

Director of the China Center for Energy Economics Research at Xiamen University Lin Boqiang said the acceleration of China's market opening has also encouraged the involvement of multinational companies in the advanced manufacturing sector to climate technology.

Deputy Director General and Secretary General of the Council for International Investment Promotion Liu Linna said multinational companies can bring advanced technology to China while helping bring China's new energy innovations to the global market.