Shenzhen's New Energy Vehicle Penetration Rate Reaches 81.7%

Recently, a key progress has been made in the key new energy construction project of Xiamen Torch High-tech Zone. The "CATL High-Performance Lithium Battery Project" invested and constructed by CATL is progressing smoothly and is expected to complete the main construction by June 2026. Oriental Yuhong provided approximately 240,000 square meters of TPO roofing system services for the project. As a core area of high-precision manufacturing, lithium battery production has extremely stringent environmental requirements. The stability of temperature and humidity and long-term protection reliability directly determine product quality and production safety, which also makes the project's requirements for building waterproof materials and system solutions far exceed ordinary industrial scenarios. It is reported that the exposed reinforced TPO waterproof membrane applied to the project by Oriental Yuhong can cope with the complex climatic conditions of high temperature, high humidity, and strong ultraviolet radiation in Xiamen, providing long-term waterproof protection for the factory buildings and supporting facilities.

According to Alfred Stern, CEO of OMV, Borealis' parent company, the merger project between petrochemical joint ventures Borealis and Borouge, including the associated acquisition of Nova Chemicals in Canada, is expected to be completed simultaneously in the first quarter of 2026. Stern stated this during OMV Group's Q4 2025 and full-year earnings analyst call on February 4th. He mentioned that the merger still requires regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. He noted, "At this stage, the remaining core work is to obtain the relevant permits that have not yet been approved." According to the parties involved in the transaction, the merger will form a new combined entity, Borouge Group International (BGI), which will become the world's fourth-largest polyolefins company.

The 7th Session of the 7th Shenzhen Municipal People's Congress opened, and Mayor Qin Weizhong delivered the government work report to the congress on behalf of the municipal government. In the past year, Shenzhen has accelerated the comprehensive green transformation of economic and social development, with the penetration rate of new energy vehicles reaching 81.7%. A total of 1,098 supercharging stations with a capacity of 480 kilowatts or more have been built.

During Shell's Q4 2025 earnings call with analysts on February 5th, CEO Wael Sawan stated that Shell's loss-making chemicals business "has not met expectations" and the company is "actively assessing the situation and considering the phased shutdown of some of our production units." In FY2025, Shell's chemicals business posted adjusted losses of $1.12 billion, marking the sixth consecutive quarter of adjusted losses, with Q4 losses reaching $589 million. The company noted that lower chemicals margins led to a $604 million year-over-year decrease in adjusted earnings and a $263 million decrease in adjusted earnings in the fourth quarter.

In February 2026, Birla Carbon inaugurated a new post-processing and packaging line for Continua™ Sustainable Carbonaceous Material (SCM) at its carbon black plant in Trecate, Italy. The feedstock for this material is sourced from waste tires processed at Circtec’s pyrolysis plant in the Netherlands, enabling large-scale supply. This move marks a critical step toward the company’s goal of recycling 300,000 tonnes of end-of-life tires annually by 2030, aiming to provide global customers with stable and eco-friendly alternative carbon black solutions.