On January 25, Bluestar held its 2022 working conference in Beijing. The meeting was aimed at implementing the spirit of Sinochem Holdings’ 2022 work conference, reviewing Bluestar’s 2021 work, analyzing existing problems and making arrangements for key tasks in 2022. Yang Shihao, vice president and member of the Leading Party Members’ Group of Sinochem Holdings, attended the meeting and delivered an important speech, with the Strategy Implementation Department of Sinochem Holdings being present at the meeting. Hao Zhigang, Party secretary and chairman of Bluestar, made a speech titled Building Development Consensus and Forming Reform Synergy for Achieving Bluestar’s High-Quality Development. Attending the meeting personally and virtually were about 500 persons including members of Bluestar’s leadership team, all the staff of the headquarters and managerial teams of overseas and domestic subsidiaries.

In 2021, in the face of profound changes unseen in a century and the pandemic, Bluestar strengthened Party building, pushed for the reform, borne in mind the country’s fundamental interests, kept abreast of the market trend, and pushed forward the reform with courage and determination. It took the initiative to handle the problems, enhanced production and operation indexes, made breakthroughs in adjusting the industrial structure and achieved new results in the loss control. It has taken solid steps towards HSE, prevented and defused major risks resolutely, unleashed vitality for the reform, injected impetus into innovation and further enhanced the ability of operation and management. The annual revenue was RMB71.5 billion, up 26.1% year-on-year; the net operating profit amounted to RMB4.17 billion, up 435% year-on-year, representing a hit record.

Mr. Yang Shihao recognized Bluestar’s work achievements in the past year and put forward requirements for Bluestar’s 2022 tasks, remarking that the company should bear in mind China’s fundamental interests and thoroughly implement Sinochem Holdings’ decisions and arrangements. Bluestar must focus on one strategy, follow two concepts and practice three key points. The company needs to pursue steady progress, assume the reform mission, and make greater contribution to building Sinochem Holdings into a world-class integrated chemical enterprise. First, Bluestar needs to implement the strategy of integrating IT application and industrialization as a major direction of work. With a grander vision, the company needs to maintain its ideological, strategic and executive strength, give full play to the “lead goose effect” in the animal nutrition division of life sciences, strengthen its leading edge in silicone materials of material science, and build itself into a global leader in new chemical materials and specialty chemicals. Second, Bluestar needs to implement the two fundamental concepts, green low-carbon development and “in science we trust”. The company needs to have a deeper understanding of the “safety and environmental protection is productivity and efficiency”, strengthen the accountability of dealing with hidden hazards, and do a good job of essential safety management. It needs to stabilize HSE fundamentals and curb accidents as the goal, and fully implement the Forus system. It needs to conform to the green low-carbon development trend, make long-term planning for environmental protection and establish eco-friendly low-carbon management system step by step. Regarding technology innovation, the enterprise needs to make concerted efforts in research, talent and digitalization, deploy the innovation chain around its key industrial chain, and continuously optimize the mechanism of “production and research synergy” and “collaboration of research institutes”. It needs to promote the exchange of technological talents at home and abroad, and build a team of international and technological talents, especially top-notch ones. It needs to introduce all high technologies from overseas enterprises. It also needs to implement the strategy of “online ChemChina”, comprehensively develop digitalization, intelligence and industrial Internet, and promote synergy and its in-depth integration with the industry. Third, Bluestar needs to focus firmly on three key priorities, and make operational excellence, loss governance and overseas enterprise management as its breakthroughs. The company needs to build a superior operation system, enhance operational efficiency, strengthen superior marketing, promote the collaboration between projects from Sinochem and ChemChina and strictly control debt risks. It needs to do everything possible to cut production costs. It also needs to manage listed companies and do a good job in their financing and market cap enhancement. It must deal with loss control, dare to meet any difficulty, set higher goals, define the goals and scope of loss control, implement the program of “a targeted strategy for an enterprise” and step up the follow-up efforts to cut and reverse losses. It needs to improve the management and governance of overseas subsidiaries, explore the integration of classic red culture into their management, put in place Chinese strategies in overseas companies and sharpen Bluestar’s global competitiveness.

Hao Zhigang made key arrangements for the 2022 work, presenting that the reform and development is urgent and complicated, and the task is arduous. Bluestar must strengthen Party building, focus on steady development, align itself with the new strategy of integrating Sinochem and ChemChina and aim at “stable growth, risk control, stronger management and quality improvement”. It needs to take reform and innovation as a driving force, pursue efficiency and effectiveness, and double efforts to specialize in the primary business of new chemical materials and specialty chemicals so as to work together to score new achievements. More emphasis should be placed on systematically improving HSE capabilities, implementing the Forus system, launching the aware-improving campaign for production safety, shoring up shortcomings and boosting the safe, green and low-carbon development. All enterprises need to implement the technology innovation-driven development, conduct R&D around key industrial chains, strengthen technology reform, tackle difficulties and optimize the management system for science and technology. They need to implement the “digital Bluestar” strategy via a data-driven value-oriented approach, realize online enterprise process, digital analysis and intelligent production. They need to strengthen the full-cost management, promote the operational excellence system, implement the integrated marketing, reduce procurement costs, control sales and management costs, and give a strong boost to their quality and efficiency. They need to resolutely turn losses into profits, practice the concept of “cutting losses is making profits and turning losses is increasing efficiency”, strengthen governance, implement the responsibility of turning losses into profits, set a clear path and time for winding down loss-making business, sort out functional loss-making business and control them, and solve the difficulties of governing loss-making enterprises. They need to put in place the strategy of integrating Sinochem and ChemChina, adjust the structure and focus on the main business, build up the whole-process investment & management for projects, facilitate the orderly exit of non-core business, and implement the Chinese strategy of overseas enterprises. They need to build a value-creating organization, pool more overseas and domestic talents, and make a big push for their all-round synergistic development. They also need to bolster the management of debt risk and free cash flow and promote the legal compliance of enterprises. All enterprises must comprehensively strengthen the Party leadership, push Party building into the hearts of employees, carry out actions to cultivate their qualities, facilitate the integration of the two corporations, strengthen the foundation, muster strengths and boost Bluestar’s high-quality development with high-quality Party building.

At the meeting, three reports were also made to share successful experiences around REC equity sale, 5G smart factory, and Nanjing Adisseo’s BANC2 safety management. Two letters of commitment to safety and environmental protection and to business objectives were signed with relevant enterprises. Bluestar Technology Award was grandly presented, which has consolidated development consensus and formed reform synergy.

According to attendees, 2022 marks a crucial year for Sinochem Holdings’ new strategy and a critical year for Bluestar’s business reorganization and integration. It is important to carry forward the great founding spirit of the Party, set a new goal for Sinochem Holdings’ strategy and highlight the primary business of new chemical materials and specialty chemicals. It is imperative to maintain the momentum, carry forward the spirit of forging ahead, write a new chapter of Bluestar's high-quality development, and embrace the 20th CPC National Congress with remarkable achievements.