Guoyuan Electric Power Leads New Thermal Power Safety Standard for China’s Coal-Fired Power Industry
China’s thermal power sector has reached a significant milestone in workplace safety management with the official release of the Implementation Specification for Work Safety Standardization of Coal-Fired Power Generation Enterprises (DL/T 3006-2025). The new industry standard, led by China Shenhua’s Guoyuan Electric Power and officially issued by the National Energy Administration (NEA), establishes the country’s first comprehensive implementation specification dedicated exclusively to work safety standardization for coal-fired power generation enterprises.
The publication of DL/T 3006-2025 represents a major advancement in China’s efforts to strengthen safety management across its thermal power industry. By providing detailed implementation guidance, the standard closes a longstanding gap between national safety policies and practical operational requirements. It introduces a unified framework that enables coal-fired power plants across China to establish consistent, measurable, and systematic work safety management systems while supporting the industry’s broader modernization goals.
Closing a Longstanding Gap in Thermal Power Safety Standards
Although China has maintained general work safety regulations and broad standards for the electric power industry for many years, thermal power generation companies have lacked a dedicated implementation specification tailored specifically to coal-fired power plants. Existing regulations outlined general principles for safety management but often provided limited operational guidance regarding practical implementation, evaluation procedures, and standardized inspection methods.
The newly released DL/T 3006-2025 addresses this challenge by translating high-level safety requirements into practical, actionable procedures that can be consistently applied across coal-fired power generation facilities. The specification provides detailed implementation methods that help enterprises improve compliance, strengthen operational discipline, and create safer working environments throughout every stage of plant operation.
Industry experts view the release as an important step toward building more standardized and transparent safety management systems while reducing inconsistencies between different power generation enterprises.
Guoyuan Electric Power Takes the Lead
Guoyuan Electric Power played a central role in developing the new industry specification. Drawing upon years of operational experience managing thermal power facilities, the company initiated the project to create a standardized implementation guide capable of serving the needs of the entire coal-fired power sector.
Recognizing that safety standardization requires broad industry participation, Guoyuan Electric Power organized a collaborative drafting team that brought together specialists from across China’s power generation industry. Rather than relying solely on internal expertise, the company assembled professionals representing multiple organizations, research institutions, and operational facilities to ensure the standard reflected practical industry experience.
The drafting team included experts from major domestic power generation groups, electric power safety research institutes, technical specialists, and frontline personnel responsible for daily operations at coal-fired generating stations. This cross-industry collaboration enabled the standard to incorporate diverse operational perspectives while addressing the unique safety challenges encountered throughout the thermal power sector.
By combining practical operational knowledge with technical research and regulatory expertise, the development team created a specification designed to be both technically rigorous and practical for everyday implementation.
Extensive Research and Industry Collaboration
The creation of DL/T 3006-2025 involved an extensive research and consultation process before receiving final approval.
The drafting team conducted comprehensive investigations into existing thermal power safety practices while carefully examining current regulatory requirements governing China’s electric power industry. The project was built upon foundational regulatory documents, including the Basic Specifications for Work Safety Standardization of Electric Power, ensuring alignment with established national safety principles while providing significantly more detailed implementation guidance.
Throughout the drafting process, experts systematically reviewed the essential components of work safety management within coal-fired power plants. Each section was evaluated to ensure that implementation requirements would be practical, measurable, and suitable for both internal management and external regulatory assessment.
Particular attention was given to developing provisions that could be objectively verified during inspections and audits. Rather than relying on broad or subjective recommendations, the specification emphasizes concrete management requirements that support consistent evaluation and continuous improvement.
The standard underwent multiple stages of refinement through public consultation, expert review, technical discussions, and repeated optimization before reaching its final form. This rigorous review process helped ensure that the specification would meet the operational needs of power producers while maintaining high technical standards.
Comprehensive Coverage of Coal-Fired Power Plant Operations
One of the defining features of DL/T 3006-2025 is its broad coverage of the critical safety management functions required within coal-fired generating stations.
The specification addresses organizational responsibilities by clearly defining safety objectives, management accountability, and leadership responsibilities throughout power generation enterprises. It establishes expectations for integrating safety management into routine operational activities while promoting a culture of continuous improvement.
Education and training also receive significant attention within the new standard. The specification outlines requirements for employee safety education, professional competency development, operational qualification management, and ongoing workforce training. These provisions aim to ensure that personnel at every organizational level possess the knowledge and skills necessary to perform their duties safely.
The standard also introduces detailed requirements for site management practices. This includes workplace organization, equipment management, operational procedures, and environmental controls designed to reduce workplace hazards while improving overall operational efficiency.
Strengthening Risk Prevention and Hazard Control
Modern safety management increasingly emphasizes proactive risk prevention rather than reactive accident response. DL/T 3006-2025 reflects this philosophy by placing significant emphasis on systematic risk identification and control.
The specification establishes clear requirements for safety risk classification, assessment, monitoring, and preventive control measures. Coal-fired power enterprises are expected to identify operational risks, evaluate their potential impact, implement appropriate control measures, and continuously monitor changing operating conditions.
Hidden danger investigation and remediation form another major component of the standard. The specification provides structured guidance for identifying potential hazards before they result in accidents. It also outlines procedures for documenting findings, implementing corrective actions, verifying improvements, and maintaining ongoing oversight of safety performance.
This systematic approach encourages continuous safety improvement by integrating regular inspections with long-term risk management strategies.
Standardized Emergency Preparedness
Emergency preparedness is another core element addressed within the new implementation specification.
Coal-fired power plants operate complex industrial systems where rapid emergency response is essential for protecting personnel, equipment, and surrounding communities. The standard establishes requirements for emergency planning, organizational responsibilities, emergency resource allocation, drills, and response coordination.
It also provides guidance on accident management procedures, helping enterprises establish standardized processes for responding to operational incidents while supporting effective recovery and continuous improvement following emergency events.
By standardizing emergency preparedness across the industry, the specification aims to improve organizational readiness while strengthening coordination during unexpected situations.
Unified Evaluation and Assessment Criteria
An important innovation introduced by DL/T 3006-2025 is the inclusion of standardized evaluation content and scoring criteria.
Previously, different enterprises could interpret safety requirements using varying internal assessment methods. The new specification establishes consistent evaluation standards that can be applied nationwide.
The document serves as a unified technical reference for several important activities, including safety standardization development, enterprise self-assessment, internal audits, corrective action planning, and third-party evaluations.
This standardized evaluation framework allows enterprises to measure safety performance using common benchmarks while supporting regulators and industry organizations in conducting more consistent inspections and performance assessments.
The availability of uniform scoring criteria is expected to improve transparency, facilitate benchmarking among power generation companies, and encourage continuous improvement across the industry.
Company Plans Industry-Wide Implementation
Following the official release of the standard, Guoyuan Electric Power has announced plans to actively promote its implementation throughout both its own operations and the broader thermal power industry.
The company intends to launch a comprehensive implementation program that combines policy interpretation, technical education, professional training, and demonstration projects. These initiatives are designed to help enterprises fully understand the new requirements while ensuring consistent application across different operating environments.
Initial implementation efforts will focus on Guoyuan Electric Power’s own coal-fired power plants, where the company plans to benchmark operations against the new specification and establish demonstration sites showcasing best practices.
These model facilities will provide valuable implementation experience while generating practical examples that can be shared with other coal-fired power generation enterprises across China.
Supporting High-Quality Development in the Energy Sector
Beyond improving operational safety, the new standard supports China’s broader objectives of promoting higher-quality development throughout the energy industry.
Standardized safety management contributes to more reliable plant operations, improved workforce protection, enhanced equipment reliability, and greater operational efficiency. These improvements not only reduce accident risks but also strengthen the long-term sustainability of thermal power generation.
As China’s energy system continues evolving toward a more diversified and modern power structure, maintaining the safe and stable operation of existing coal-fired generation remains essential for ensuring reliable electricity supply and supporting grid stability.
By introducing a comprehensive and unified implementation framework, DL/T 3006-2025 provides coal-fired power enterprises with practical tools for strengthening safety management while contributing to the secure development of China’s new-generation power system.
Through its leadership in developing and promoting the new specification, Guoyuan Electric Power is helping establish stronger industry-wide safety practices that support long-term operational excellence, regulatory compliance, and the continued advancement of China’s energy sector.
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