Hebei in Rush to Meet the Deadline

The Hebei government is striving to fulfill its target of eliminating outdated capacity by the end of September.

The province has so far scraped 1.11 million tons of coke capacity, accounting for 88 percent of its planned target; 12.27 million tons of cement, 97.4 percent; 6.28 million tons of pig iron, 50.6 percent; and 1.08 million tons of steel, 54 percent.

Among the 11 relevant cities of the province, four cities Shijiazhuang, Hengshui, Cangzhou and Qinhuangdao - have accomplished their missions of backward elimination.

In Tangshan, the province's major steel-producing city, 12 blast furnaces have been broken down, accounting for one-third of the furnaces to be demolished.

Three furnaces have been removed in Handan City, leaving a quarter of the total still in operation. All the three converters in question also remain in use.

Two of the four obsolete furnaces have been torn down in Xingtai.

Any operator of these substandard facilities beyond the deadline will see their pollution discharge licenses revoked. Financial institutions are not allowed to provide credits for them. Their requirements for land use and investment applications will also be denied.