China has launched three of the world's largest carbon fiber production lines in Lianyungang, east China's Jiangsu Province, marking a breakthrough in high‑end materials manufacturing and a milestone in the nation's drive for industrial upgrading.
The new facilities, operated by China National Building Material Group Co., cover general‑purpose, high‑strength and high‑modulus carbon fiber products.
The three newly-launched lines, each among the largest globally, feature distinct strengths.
A 5,000-tonne large-tow line, using proprietary dry-wet spinning, produces wind-power materials at lower cost and boosts large-scale manufacturing.
A 1,000-tonne T1100 line, the world's first with a four-meter width, targets high-end applications such as aerospace and low-altitude aircraft.
A 600-tonne high-modulus line serves advanced equipment and 3C electronics.
Together, the three lines strengthen China's carbon fiber supply chain. The large‑tow line makes wind power and electric vehicles lighter and cheaper, the T1100 line breaks foreign monopolies and secures aerospace supply chains, and the high‑modulus line opens new markets for advanced manufacturing.
"The three lines mainly produce high-end carbon fiber products. With just one-fifth the weight of steel but eight times the strength, they can reduce the weight of aerospace and low-altitude aircraft by about 20 percent," said Jin Liang, head of a 30,000-tonne carbon fiber production base in Lianyungang under China National Building Material Group Co.
The launch of the three top-tier lines fills gaps in domestic high-end carbon fiber capacity, completes the full self-sufficiency chain across all product categories, and shifts the industry from scale-driven rivalry to technology-led, high-end growth.
"We have noticed a remarkable shift in China's carbon fiber industry toward high-end products in 2026, better meeting the market demands of aerospace, low-altitude economy and new energy sectors. The nation's carbon fiber capacity is expected to exceed 200,000 tonnes in 2026, with output projected to surpass 100,000 tonnes," said Zhang Hui, secretary-general of the carbon fiber composite materials branch of the Chinese Society for Composite Materials.
China expands carbon fiber capacity with three world-class production lines
