(April 16, 2026 Industry News)In April 2026, the domestic silica industry is in a critical period of deep integration of policy guidance and market competition, different from the previous single perspective of focusing on price or demand, the green orientation on the policy side and the differentiated competition on the enterprise side jointly outline a new picture of industry development and promote the substantive transformation of the industry from "scale expansion" to "quality improvement".

At the policy level, environmental protection and industrial upgrading policies continue to increase, becoming the "baton" of industry development. Recently, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment jointly issued the "Action Plan for Green and Low-carbon Development of the Chemical Industry (2026-2030)", which clearly proposes to implement "classified control and echelon upgrading" for the silica industry, encourage enterprises to adopt green processes such as carbon dioxide acidification and recycling, and limit traditional sulfuric acid small devices with high energy consumption and high emissions. In this context, Jiangsu, Shandong, Jiangxi and other major producing areas have carried out special inspections to limit production and rectify enterprises that do not meet environmental protection standards, forcing the industry to accelerate green transformation.

At the level of enterprise competition, differentiated layout has become the key to breakthrough, and leading enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises are polarized. Head enterprises focus on high-end and diversified layout, Quecheng Co., Ltd., Jinneng Technology and other enterprises increase R&D investment, focusing on promoting the production capacity expansion and technology optimization of high-dispersion silica, nano-scale silica, and food-grade silica. At the same time, small and medium-sized silica enterprises are difficult to adapt to policies and market demand due to weak technology and rising compliance costs, and are mostly concentrated in the field of silica for ordinary rubber, facing the dilemma of shrinking orders and profit pressure, and some enterprises have launched capacity withdrawal or transformation plans.

From the perspective of industrial chain coordination, the linkage of upstream and downstream enterprises is becoming more and more close. Upstream sodium silicate, sulfuric acid and other raw material enterprises have signed long-term supply agreements with silica manufacturers to stabilize the supply of raw materials and avoid the risk of price fluctuations; Downstream tires, silicone rubber, and new energy enterprises have carried out customized cooperation with silica enterprises, jointly developed special products according to the needs of application scenarios, and promoted the upgrading of silica products from "general-purpose fillers" to "functional materials".

Industry experts said that 2026 is a key year for the implementation of policies and the reshaping of the competition pattern of the silica industry, and the green transformation and differentiated competition of enterprises under the guidance of policies will continue to promote the optimization of the industry structure. In the future, only enterprises that accurately grasp policy orientation, focus on high-end demand, and strengthen technological innovation can gain a firm foothold in industry reform and promote the high-quality development of the silica industry.