23.5.2022
EN
Official Journal of the European Union
L 143/19
Member of the Hebei’s province People’s Congress.
More generally, in view of the general applicability of the legislation on CCP presence in companies, it can be safely concluded that the ability of the GOC to interfere with prices and costs through State presence in firms is significant in the steel sector in general, as well as specifically for the exporting producers covered in this investigation.
(52)
Both public and privately owned enterprises in the ECCS sector are subject to policy supervision and guidance.
The following examples illustrate the above trend of an increasing level of intervention by the GOC in the ECCS sector.
The producers of the product under investigation explicitly emphasise party building activities on their websites, have party members in the company management and underline their affiliation to the CCP.
The investigation revealed party building activities in Baosteel.
The official website mentions that there are 301 CCP committees and 85 437 CCP members in China Baowu Group (23) (the holding company of Baosteel).
Moreover, the group indicates the following concerning the CCP building in the enterprise: “Strengthen the integration of the Party’s leadership with the improvement of corporate governance, improve the modern enterprise system.
China Baowu fully implements the requirements of the “Opinions on Strengthening the Party's Leadership in the Improvement of Corporate Governance of Central Enterprises”, [...] The revised and improved decision-making system for major matters further improved the decision-making authority of the Party committee, the board of directors, managers and other governance bodies, the decision-making matters and forms authorized by the board of directors [...].
[...] Baowu adheres to and implements the simultaneous planning of Party building and enterprise reform, the simultaneous establishment of Party organizations and operational entities, the simultaneous allocation of persons in charge Party organizations and Party affairs staff”.
(24) The Baosteel company describes the CCP building activities as follows: “Undertake the main responsibility of administering the party strictly and comprehensively; Lead the company’s ideological and political work, united front work, building of a spiritual civilisation, building of a corporate culture and mass work such as trade unions and the Communist Youth League; Lead the construction of party-style and honest government, support discipline committees to effectively fulfil their supervisory responsibilities (25)”.
(53)
Further, policies discriminating in favour of domestic producers or otherwise influencing the market in the sense of Article 2(6a)(b), third indent of the basic Regulation are in place in the ECCS sector.
(54)
The steel industry, which is the main component for the production of ECCS, is regarded as a key industry by the GOC (26).
This is confirmed in the numerous plans, directives and other documents focused on steel, which are issued at national, regional and municipal level such as the ‘Steel Industry Adjustment and Upgrading plan for 2016-2020’.
This Plan states that the steel industry is “an important, fundamental sector of the Chinese economy, a national cornerstone” (27).
The main tasks and objectives set out in this Plan cover all aspects of the development of the industry (28).
(55)
The 13th Five-Year Plan on Economic and Social Development (29) envisages support to enterprises producing highend steel product types (30).
It also focuses on achieving product quality, durability and reliability by supporting companies using technologies related to clean steel production, precision rolling and quality improvement (31).
(56)
The ‘Guiding Catalogue for Industry Restructuring (2019 Version)’ (32) approved by Decree of the National Development and Reform Commission of the People's Republic of China No 29 of 27 August 2019, which entered into force on 1 January 2020 (‘the Catalogue’) lists steel as encouraged industry.
(23) http://www.baowugroup.com/party_building/overview (24) Ibidem.
(25) See Articles of Association of Baosteel, Article 133.4: http://static.sse.com.cn//disclosure/listedinfo/announcement/c/2021-01-08/600019_20210108_8.pdf (last viewed 6 May 2021).
(26) Report, Part III, Chapter 14, p. 346 ff.
(27) Introduction to The Plan for Adjusting and Upgrading the Steel Industry.
(28) Report, Chapter 14, p. 347.
(29) The 13th Five-Year Plan for Economic and Social Development of the People’s Republic of China (2016-2020), available at https://en.ndrc.gov.cn/newsrelease_8232/201612/P020191101481868235378.pdf (last viewed 2 March 2020).
(30) Report – Chapter 14, p. 349.
(31) Report – Chapter 14, p. 352.
(32) ‘Guiding Catalogue for Industry Restructuring (2019 Version)’ approved by Decree of the National Development and Reform Commission of the People's Republic of China No. 29 of 27 August 2019 http://www.gov.cn/xinwen/2019-11/06/5449193/files/ 26c9d25f713f4ed5b8dc51ae40ef37af.pdf, last accessed on 11 April 2022.