This year’s Macao International Environmental Co-operation Forum & Exhibition (MIECF) expects a 20% surge in international exhibitors and buyers seeking green opportunities under China’s “dual carbon” goals.

Guided by the “15th Five-Year Plan,” the event emphasizes low-carbon transitions and industrial upgrades for the fifth straight year.

New highlights of the event include a “Zero-Waste Circular Economy Exhibition Zone,” plus zones for green mobility and low-carbon projects. These zones spotlight waste recycling, green finance, and zero-waste urban development.

At Monday’s press conference, Commerce and Investment Promotion Institute President Che Weng Keong said, “This year’s MIECF covers a total exhibition area of 12,000 square meters, bringing together Fortune Global 500 energy giants, leading Chinese mainland environmental enterprises, environmental organizations from Portuguese-speaking countries, top-tier technology companies, and more than 350 brand exhibitors from 12 countries and regions.”

In addition to the main exhibition, four Green Forum sessions are planned featuring experts including Tsinghua University Prof. He Kebin, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering. He will keynote on “Dual Carbon Initiatives and Zero-Waste City Development.” Topics will cover carbon credit markets, the Green Silk Road, Pan-Pearl River Delta cooperation, and innovative waste management.

Che highlighted, “In line with the country’s ‘dual carbon’ goals and the new opportunities arising from the green, low-carbon transition and industrial upgrading under the ‘15th Five-Year Plan,’ this year’s MIECF will, for the fifth consecutive year, be held as a professional exhibition achieving carbon neutrality.”

He added that the “Exhibition + Inspection + Matching” model across Macao-Hengqin sites, including four themed sessions on new energy exports, public institution cooperation, environmental tech, and green buildings, paves the way for enterprises to tap domestic and overseas markets, promoting industry upgrades under the “15th Five-Year Plan” and enhancing Macao’s MICE spillover effects.

The three-day event is coordinated by the Commerce and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) and Environmental Protection Bureau (DSPA), and draws support from the National Development and Reform Commission, Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, and Ministry of Ecology and Environment.

The event opens Thursday at the Venetian Macao’s Cotai Expo and runs until March 28.