On the morning of August 27, China Minmetals held a Symposium on the Action Plan of the National Metallurgical Construction Team. Tang Fuping, Chairman and Party Group Secretary of China Minmetals, attended the meeting and put forward work requirements. Guo Wenqing, China Minmetals' President and Deputy Party Group Secretary and MCC Chairman, presided over the meeting and made arrangements for building an upgraded national metallurgical construction team.

Since the strategic restructuring four years ago, China Minmetals has focused on the development of main business, i.e., metal mining and metallurgical construction, and has built a business system featured by "four beams and eight columns", with the metallurgical construction business being truly the best in the world. At present, the national metallurgical construction team is facing new major development opportunities. By finding gaps, making up shortcomings, and realizing forward-looking development, it can better shoulder national responsibilities and lead the development of the world steel metallurgy industry. At the same time, it can provide a crucial support for the "14th Five-Year Plan" (2021-2025) for metallurgical construction and truly reflect the high-quality development level of China Minmetals.

Focusing on building an upgraded national metallurgical construction team, Guo Wenqing put forward the following three requirements:

First, we should maintain the strategic direction and determination of the national metallurgical construction team as always.

General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that entrepreneurs must persevere in their business. MCC Group has gone through an extraordinary course of development over the years, having achieved leap-forward development. To achieve it, an extremely important experience tip is to maintain the strategic direction and determination as always and spare no effort to build a national metallurgical construction team. There is no hesitation in decision-making, no distraction in energy, and no divestment in the most difficult times.

After the outbreak of the international financial crisis, the metallurgical market shrank severely, and there was no new steel project at that time. In 2012, in the performance evaluation on the legal persons of central state-owned enterprises issued by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council (SASAC), MCC Group was rated Level-D for two consecutive years, and was listed as a debt risk supervision enterprise. Faced with such development dilemma, MCC Group started reforms since the "9·5" conference and made an important decision to "refocus on the main business", forming the early strategic thought of design enterprises to build a national team. In 2013, it further clarified the development vision of "focusing on MCC's main business and building a better MCC", highlighting its position as the world's largest "metallurgical engineering contractor" and "metallurgical enterprise operation service provider".

In 2015, for the contradiction between the supply-side structural reform requirements and the transformation and upgrading of the steel industry, it proposed for the first time from the perspective of national responsibility that "we must take the lead in the world and in the entire metallurgical industry by creating core technologies, improving innovation capabilities, integrating irreplaceable advantages and shouldering national responsibilities of leading China's metallurgical industry to a higher level". It clarified the core elements and "soul" of the national metallurgical construction team, and established the world's first national metallurgical construction team according to 8 major parts and 19 business units of iron and steel.

In 2016, after the strategic restructuring, MCC Group enjoyed greater development potentials. Based on its metallurgy business, it clarified its strategic position "of being the national metallurgical construction team, the main force of infrastructure construction, and the pacesetter of emerging industries by adhering to the road of high technology and high quality development in the long run". It pointed out that "to build a national team, we should look at the world level rather than MCC or China and view from the future rather than the past or the present". Starting from this goal, MCC Group officially released the action manual for the national metallurgical construction team, indicating a crucial step towards implementation.

In 2017, in the face of the structural transformation and upgrading needs of the global steel industry characterized by quality, green, intelligence and service-orientation, MCC Group accurately judged the situation and focused on metallurgical construction again to promote the national metallurgical construction team regarding pioneering work, enhancement and recreation. We iteratively upgraded the core technology to achieve pioneering work, especially focus on supporting original innovation and "bottleneck" technology innovation. We took the advantage of the whole industry chain integration to achieve enhancement. Besides, we optimized the traditional advantage chains such as design and construction, strengthened the weak chains of core technology equipment, complemented the missing chains of operation services, and upgraded the system in the steel ecosystem control. At the same time, we improved innovation capabilities to achieve recreation and market expansion.

In 2020, facing the high-quality development and upgrade of the iron and steel industry, MCC Group clearly proposed to popularize the brand, concentrated on building an upgraded national metallurgical construction team, and undertook the national mission to lead the high-quality development of the steel industry in China and in the world.

Over the past 8 years, we have made decisive decisions and timely adjustments based on the forward-looking judgments and accurate grasped of the development trend of the steel industry, and put forward corresponding development strategies at the most appropriate moments, forming a unified, consistent, and progressive idea in establishing the national metallurgical construction team. Such idea not only scientifically answers the basic questions of what kind of national metallurgical construction team will be built and how to build the national metallurgical construction team, but also solves the ideological problem of "where is MCC going" which has been puzzled us for many years. The traditional old steel enterprise has radiated new vitality and embarked on the path of high-quality development. At present, the national metallurgical construction team has basically formed a sound system that can represent the national level featured by leading technology and complete system. Besides, it has mastered a number of core technologies that can compete with foreign competitors or even surpass opponents, firmly occupying 90% of the domestic metallurgical construction market and 60% of the world counterpart. It is necessary to strengthen confidence, maintain determination, and continue to move forward firmly in the direction of building a national metallurgical construction team.

Second, we should always maintain the innovation capability of the national metallurgical construction team.

MCC Group has developed quickly, increased in size and expanded from China to the world. Building a national metallurgical construction team is also a process of continuous improvement, understanding and upgrading. At present, in the face of unprecedented changes in the world, we must strive to find new opportunities in the crisis, open new games in the changing situation, and create an upgraded national metallurgical construction team.

To achieve it, it is necessary to actively respond to changes in the domestic and foreign situation, and strictly implement the important instructions of General Secretary Xi Jinping. Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic this year, readjustment of international economic and political landscape has been accelerating, and the global industrial chain and supply chain have been severely challenged, that is, a new round of reconstruction will usher in. General Secretary Xi Jinping reviewed the current situation and clearly proposed to accelerate the formation of a new development pattern in which the domestic cycle is the main body and the domestic and international dual cycles promote each other. The central state-owned enterprises (SOEs) have an unshrinkable responsibility for safeguarding national economic interests and industrial safety. The national metallurgical construction team must take the initiative, shoulder greater responsibilities, and make due contributions to the stability of the domestic industrial chain and the improvement of international competitiveness.

To build an upgraded national metallurgical construction team is to build the "national pillar" which can lead the development of the world steel industry. The equipment manufacturing industry is a national pillar, and the production service industry in key areas is also a national pillar. The development status of the productive service industry determines the upgrading level of the manufacturing industry. Iron and steel are basic materials of industry. The iron and steel industry is one of the most important components of the national industrial system. Metallurgical construction is a national pillar for erecting the iron and steel backbone. Faced with the new requirements for high-quality development in the transformation and upgrading of the steel industry, the national metallurgical construction team must view from the national level to support the intelligent and green development of China's steel industry and help China's advanced steel manufacturing technology "go global."

To establish an upgraded national metallurgical construction team is to push MCC Group into a new stage of high-quality development and give play to China Minmetals' complementary restructuring advantages. This year, MCC Group and MCC Mid-year Working Conference pointed out that "MCC high quality development has entered a new stage". As the foundation of MCC's development, the national metallurgical construction team must take the lead in upgrading the actual plan, showing a fresh look at a new stage. It is necessary to deeply understand the importance of "pairing" design enterprises and construction enterprises, strengthen internal coordination, and form synergy for development. Furthermore, it is necessary to give full play to the unique advantages of the entire industry chain formed by the complementary restructuring of China Minmetals, improve the system integration capabilities of steel metallurgy and steel raw material trade and logistics business, and promote greater development of projects over 100 million ton, such as the Caofeidian International Ore Trading Center Project.

Third, we should systematically coordinate and accelerate the establishment of an upgraded national metallurgical construction team.

First of all, we should find the gap with the world's standard and pay close attention to the shortcomings. The comprehensive strength of the national metallurgical construction team has become the world's first, with strong overall design capabilities, EPC general contracting and system integration capabilities, but there are still deficiencies in some individual items and key links. In addition, the "national team" talent stability and intellectual property protection of patented technologies need to be further strengthened. To make up for these gaps and shortcomings, it is necessary to take the initiative to promote innovation, list detailed plans, clarify the specific division of labor, establish a promotion mechanism, and use rock-solid determination and perseverance to move forward as a climber.

Second, we should always adhere to the leadership of scientific and technological innovation to ensure the leading position. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that speeding up breakthroughs in core technologies was the key to form a major domestic cycle. The national metallurgical construction team must hold high the banner of scientific and technological innovation at any time. It is necessary to closely focus on the technological roadmap for steel development to strengthen research, and coordinate scientific and technological innovation to make up shortcomings, strengthen the foundation and promote upgrading. It demands an active integration into the national science and technology innovation system and initiative to undertake major & key national research and development tasks, so as to reflect the innovative strength of the national team. It is required to strengthen the tracking of cutting-edge technologies in iron and steel metallurgy, the forward-looking research and judgment on the development trend of the steel industry, and then plan countermeasures in advance. It is necessary to effectively increase the success rate of achievement transformation, unify ideas, build one or two steel demonstration bases, accelerate the construction of metallurgical equipment industrial parks, conduct in-depth study on projects constructed inside the park, protect technologies, and use core technology in the devices and products which will be sent to the "Belt and Road" countries and other places in the world. It needs further reforming the cultivation mechanism of scientific and technological talents, forming a group of chief experts in eight major positions, mobilizing the enthusiasm of scientific research personnel to the greatest extent, and protecting confidentiality of R&D departments and design drawings. Science and Technology Management Division under China Minmetals and Science and Technology Project and Innovation Fund should increase support for the R&D of core technologies to create better conditions.

Third, we should continuously improve the ability of system integration to ensure the "irreplaceable" of the team. Under the new development pattern of "double circulation", steel mills have accelerated mergers and acquisitions, which lead to the increase of industry concentration and the gradual formation of a self-circulation system within steel companies. The national metallurgical construction team should continue to work towards the goal of China Minmetals to build an internal market of 100 billion yuan, strengthen its own industrial chain integration and boost value creation. It should continue to strengthen its core business and enhance the control ability of the whole industry chain and key links based on consolidating, strengthening, supplementing, and extending the industrial chain. At the same time, it is necessary to ceaselessly improve the coordination and accelerate system integration to achieve the seamless connection between the design team as the first echelon and the subsidiaries responsible for construction. The team should reasonably deal with profit distribution, maintain the enthusiasm of the subsidiaries, strictly prohibit vicious competition and internal wrangling, and make dynamic adjustments to the first echelon when necessary.

Fourth, we should create the perfect environment for the whole Group to support the building of the national metallurgical construction team brand. To achieve this, it is necessary to further enhance the brand influence, select 50 key customers who are currently cooperating with the Group and 50 key customers under development, establish a high-level docking mechanism, and provide "point-to-point" quality services. It is also important to establish a new strategic partnership with steel mills to improve the quality of production and operation services, and deeply embed each link of metallurgical construction into the entire process of steel mill operation services to attract and retain customers. Facing the new competitive landscape, it is necessary to strengthen the sense of crisis, carry out equity cooperation and project cooperation with a sense of strategic competition and greater courage, and go all out to ensure the first position in the domestic steel market. Meanwhile, the arrangements and requirements of China Minmetals for the national metallurgical construction team should be communicated to all levels of enterprises, so that the subsidiaries can correctly understand the will of the Group and know what to do and how to do it. In the new era and facing the new situation, it is necessary to actively plan a series of special reports on "National Pillar", increase publicity within the industry and across the country, and fully demonstrate the contribution that China Minmetals has made as a national team to national strategy and polish the brand of the national metallurgical construction team.

Focusing on pushing the national metallurgical construction team to a new height, Mr. Tang Fuping, China Minmetals' Party Group Secretary and Chairman puts forward three points:

First, this is a significant meeting to implement the spirit of the important instructions of General Secretary Xi Jinping. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized that state-owned enterprises were the important material and political foundation for socialism with Chinese characteristics, and the important pillar and strength for our Party to govern and rejuvenate the country. As the first pilot enterprise among state-owned capital investment companies in the field of metal ore, China Minmetals not only plays the role of a "pillar" supporting the stability of the national economy and a "main force" for implementing the national strategy, but also shoulders the important mission of focusing on the main responsibility and main business, ensuring the supply of national mineral resources, innovating and leading the transformation and upgrading of the industry. General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly stressed that state-owned enterprises should be stronger, better and larger, and that the state-owned economy should enhance competitiveness, innovation, control, influence, and risk resistance. The national metallurgical construction team is a perfect "business card" of China Minmetals. Such a strategic positioning and a development direction not only reflect its strength, but also reflect its responsibility for the country. Top priority will be given to the goal of becoming stronger, better and larger, and the "five enhancement" to build a national metallurgical construction team.

Second, taking the opportunity of pushing the national metallurgical construction team to new heights, China Minmetals should elaborately formulate the "14th Five-Year Plan". The "14th Five-Year Plan" period is the first five years for China to seize opportunities to embark on a new journey of building a modern socialist country in all respects and march towards the second centenary goal. It is also the key five years for China Minmetals to build a world-class metal mining group. This meeting is also an investigation into the metallurgical construction business of MCC. This action plan is an important result of the "14th Five-Year Plan" of the national metallurgical construction team. In the "14th Five-Year Plan" of China Minmetals, the future direction and objectives of the national metallurgical construction team should be clarified and quantified, including market share and new technology share. The Group should implement all-round benchmarking, not only with leading companies in comprehensive strength, but also with outstanding companies in a single field or link.

Third, to push the national metallurgical construction team to a new height, we should resolve major and difficult problems, and weakness.

First of all, we should handle the relationship between the individual and the group, and further improve the ability to provide overall solutions. The Team needs excellent employees as well as great groups. At present, the businesses and markets of related subsidiaries have overlapped, and they have not yet achieved complete complementary development and large-scale systematic integration. MCC has carried out many effective explorations to solve this problem, but, MCC must further strengthen this work to provide customers with the overall best solutions. At the same time, MCC should start from the top-level design, further strengthen the coordination, and vigorously improve the ability and effect of systematic coordination. Subsidiaries should think in big-picture terms, not only to give full play to their own advantages, but also to handle the competition and cooperation relationship with brother companies.

The second is to look up to world-class technology to further improve original innovation capabilities. The current technology R&D mainly focuses on the improvement of metallurgical process. Although many breakthroughs have been made, the original innovation of production technology needs to be strengthened. Once major original technology innovations such as fusion reduction and hydrogen smelting achieve breakthroughs, they will have a disruptive impact on the entire industry and will completely change the existing technical links and market structure of steel metallurgy and the existing technology accumulation and industrial advantages of China Minmetals will lose value. The original technological breakthrough may take a long time. The national metallurgical construction team must be more mindful of the difficulties ahead and be more hardworking in ensuring long-term development, proactively strengthen original technological innovation, and continue to tackle key problems in key areas, and strive for the first place. The original technological innovation in the field of steel production cannot be accomplished by a single company. It is necessary to make full use of the platform of the "national team" and jointly promote the development of technology with the help of national-level forces.

The third is to connect the entire chain of R&D, design, construction, operation, and service to improve systematic support capabilities. Technical service is fundamental. Only by providing a full set of technical services for steel mills can the Group firmly grasp the initiative of cooperation. The current focus is to solve the problem of shifting from providing labor services to providing technical services. A testing center for the Caofeidian billion-ton international ore mixing center project is established to study and solve the technical service problems of steel mills, enhance in-depth services to steel mills, and increase customer stickiness. It is necessary to enhance the awareness of technical services, actively invest in key areas, deeply cooperate with steel mills, and provide steel mills with comprehensive and systematic technical services. In terms of intelligent manufacturing, it is necessary to avoid repeated investment and integrate internal resources to form a complete set of intelligent information systems, and realize collaborative sharing.

The fourth is to lead the world's steel development ahead of time, and always maintain its leading position in the industry. The transfer of the international steel industry is a notable feature of the development of the world's steel industry, from Europe and the United States to Japan and South Korea, and then to China and Southeast Asia, which also leads to the rise and fall of metallurgical technology in related countries. In the face of the new round of global industrial chain reconstruction and the outward transfer of domestic excess steel production capacity, it is necessary to predict the situation in advance, research the law of industrial transfer, and take targeted measures to ensure that it will always occupy the commanding heights and leadership position of the industry in the long term.

The fifth is to fully play the role of top-level design and mechanisms. The world is undergoing major changes unseen in a century, and uncertainties and instability have increased significantly. It is necessary to analyze the development trend of the global steel industry from the perspective of the new development pattern of "two overall situations" and "double circulation", and make a sound overall development plan for the national metallurgical construction team. It needs to further deepen the reform, establish and improve the system and mechanism compatible with the team, make both long-term goals and short-term arrangements to promote the national metallurgical construction team to achieve more stable, better, higher, farther and more sustainable development.

MCC has convened the meeting to hear reports on the action plan of the national metallurgical construction team. Six internal experts, i.e., Xiao Xuewen from CISDI Group Co., Ltd., Yue Wenyan from MCC Capital Engineering & Research Incorporation Limited (CERI), Xiang Mingwu from WISDRI Engineering & Research Incorporation Ltd. (WISDRI), Yu Zhendong from ACRE Coking & Refractory Engineering Consulting Corporation, Ye Hengdi from ZHONGYE CHANGTIAN INTERNATIONAL ENGINEERING CO., LTD. (CIE) and Bai Xiaohu from Shanghai Baoye Group Corp., Ltd. (Shanghai Baoye), reviewed and summarized the achievements of their companies in recent years, and comprehensively reported the future development of their businesses around the action plan of the national metallurgical construction team.

Xiao Xuewen said that in the future, CISDI would further overcome the problems related to green development, and excel in major national special projects such as intelligent steel manufacturing, industry 4.0, and network-based collaborative production; actively respond to major changes in the development and transformation of the steel industry and complete structural adjustments, industrial upgrading, green manufacturing, intelligent manufacturing and other work. Xiao also pointed out that CISDI would continue to play a key role in the field of national infrastructure construction, and continuously improve the ability to serve the national manufacturing industry, put more efforts into the R&D of core original equipment and technology to form a unique competitive position and competitiveness in the field of global steel engineering technology. Besides, Xiao stated that CISDI would establish an industrial chain system and business ecosystem that integrates the advantages of China Minmetals and MCC in the service & manufacturing industry, and continuously improve the quality of operational services with the development of intelligence.

Yue Wenyan said that CERI would continue to strengthen the construction of the first echelon; that under CERI's philosophy "Precisely Focusing on Metallurgy", guided by updated version 2.0 of the MCC National Team, and combined with China Minmetals' 14th Five-Year Plan, The R&D and operation service tasks of the national metallurgical construction team would be implemented one by one. Yue also pointed out that guided by the market, CERI would speed up the research on key common technologies and weak links, focus on green and intelligence technologies, and realize the coordinated development of MCC. Meanwhile, Yue also emphasized coordination with construction companies, i.e., learn from each other, to form a community with complementary advantages. Yue stated that CERI would precisely locate advantageous markets, accurately promote results and market development, strengthen localized management, cultivate a stable overseas market, and strengthen the training of leading talents in science and technology field.

Xiang Mingwu said that WISDRI would continue to advance the upgrading of core technologies and equipment technologies to provide new driving force for improving relevant work. Moreover, Xiang pointed out that WISDRI would strive to advance breakthroughs in digital and green technologies, and play an active role in integrating our processing technology and intelligent technology to lead the ecological and quality development of steel enterprises. What's more, Xiang indicated that WISDRI would vigorously explore the international market and work hard to increase our presence in high-end markets. On top of that, Xiang stated that WISDRI would further improve the brand influence, leadership and market control of our dominant industry, constantly improve our development level of our local enterprises and seize the market of high-end engineering project and high value operation service, in an effort to strengthen project operation capacity and risk control capacity.

Yu Zhengdong said that ACRE would start from improving the mechanism of R&D initialization, upgrading the mechanism of R&D process management, innovating the mechanism of assessment and distribution, advancing the engineering mechanism of R&D project, strengthening the mechanism of R&D integration and cooperation, strengthening the strategy of intellectual property and further enhancing the building of talents engaging in scientific and technological innovation. Yu also indicated that ACRE would continue the capacity building with technological innovation at its core and adhere to the technological development featuring large scale, high efficiency, smart and green technology. Yu stated that by doing so, ACRE would push our key coking technologies to the rank of world's leading level and expand coking markets both at home and abroad through using technological innovation as core competitiveness, to build us into a world-class international engineering enterprise.

Ye Hengdi said that CIE would further strengthen the efforts for technological innovation, focus on efficient and green development as well as smart manufacturing of steel industry, improve the level of clean sintering and the overall utilization level of complex iron ore resource and make breakthroughs in unmanned sintering technology. Ye also stated that CIE would increase our efforts for digitalization and comprehensively elevate the digital level of sintering engineering design and project management to build sintering and pelletizing equipment into the brands with international influence, advance the building of the whole-process sintering standard system. Ye indicated that CIE would improve the value of technologies before iron making and work with some universities and enterprises for making breakthroughs, in an effort to build the sintering process of the steel industry into a key platform for handling the solid waste in cities and contribute to the integration and coexistence of steel industry and urban development.

Bai Xiaohu said that Shanghai Baoye has been exploring the management pattern of general contracting of the whole industry chain, and that Shanghai Baoye would summarize the experience gained from management pattern and cost control of typical projects, and put them into practice in the form of systems and processes. Bai indicated that by doing so, Shanghai Baoye would establish a whole-process management pattern of general contracting that could display the strength of the whole industry chain, covering marketing and quotation, project organization form, staffing, internal division of work, performance evaluation mechanism, project engineering, design proposal, equipment procurement, material procurement, site management and commissioning. Bai also said that Shanghai Baoye would plan the overall integration of internal metallurgy business and is devoted to injecting new vitality into the national metallurgical construction team through various reform measures.

In the meeting, it is noted that MCC should earnestly study and implement the guiding principles put forward in the meeting, and regard the upgrading of the national team of metallurgy development as top priority. Moreover, MCC needs to advance the implementation of action plans and ensure the performance of responsibility to fully demonstrate the sense of responsibility of the national team.

The leaders of China Minmetals, including Liu Caiming, Lu Weidong, Ren Zhufeng and Wang Shilei, attended the meeting. Executives and directors of discipline inspection and supervision, all departments at Headquarters and all directly-affiliated organizations of China Minmetals, as well as leaders, directors of relevant departments and representatives of design institutes and construction units of MCC were present at the meeting.