Estelle Brachlianoff, CEO of Veolia, arrived in Beijing recently to attend the 17th Meeting of the International Business Leaders Advisory Council for the Mayor of Beijing, which will be held this week. The visit, her third to China in two years, is the latest signal of the French group's commitment to the Chinese market and its engagement in the country's green transition during the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-30).

As the only Fortune Global 500 company specializing in ecological transformation and resource management, Veolia has served as a member of the International Business Leaders Advisory Council for the Mayor of Beijing since 2002, making it one of the first Fortune Global 500 companies to join the mechanism.

Global expertise

The advisory meeting comes as Beijing prepares its 15th Five-Year Plan. Drawing on Veolia's cutting-edge practices in global megacity ecological management, Brachlianoff will offer professional advice on topics including zero-carbon industrial parks, emerging pollutant control, and digital industry decarbonization — all aligned with Beijing's ambition to become a global green innovation hub. She will also hold talks with the Beijing municipal government and key partners.

During her stay in Beijing, Brachlianoff is scheduled to meet and have exchanges with several academies and important business partners to expand Veolia's presence in China.

Strong recovery in nation

Veolia's latest financial report shows the group achieved a record revenue of 44.4 billion euros ($51.7 billion) in 2025.

Over the past two years, the company's China operations have shaken off the effect of the pandemic and returned to a steady growth track, emerging as a key driver for Veolia's Asian business.

Since entering the Chinese market in the early 1990s, Veolia has operated more than 100 projects in around 50 cities across China, covering water, waste management, energy and the circular economy.

In 2025, Veolia increased its investment in China, with newly added contracted foreign capital exceeding 1 billion yuan ($145.7 million). The company has built one of its global water research and development centers and established a large-scale membrane production plant in the country. From the upgrading of industrial wastewater treatment facilities in Tongling, Anhui province, to the capacity expansion of hazardous waste treatment in Tianjin's Binhai New Area, Veolia has not only kept expanding new projects in the depollution sector, but accelerated its business layout in carbon reduction, bioenergy, new materials and the circular economy.

Aligning with green paths

"China is an important market within Veolia's global strategic framework. The group will continue to deepen its roots here, implementing our GreenUp strategy through the deep integration of global solutions with local needs, thereby fully supporting China's dual carbon goals," Brachlianoff said. "China is not just a market but an innovation engine."

As China rapidly develops emerging industries such as new energy and artificial intelligence, Veolia is leveraging its expertise in integrated resource management to provide one-stop solutions covering renewable energy production, water and waste recycling, and carbon capture. In digital operations, projects including the AHEAD intelligent heating system in Harbin and smart water management in Shanghai and Tianjin have achieved tangible energy savings and efficiency gains.

Emerging pollutant control is a key focus for Veolia during the 15th Five-Year Plan. Drawing on its mature experience and expertise in Europe, the United States and other international markets, the group plans to introduce advanced technologies and develop comprehensive solutions integrating detection, treatment and closed-loop disposal.

Veolia will also deepen its involvement in the development of zero-carbon industrial parks in China and expand its presence in green hydrogen, green methanol and carbon capture, utilization and storage technologies to support deep decarbonization in the industrial sector.

Veolia said it will continue to increase investment in China, expand partnerships with major State-owned enterprises and implement its GreenUp growth strategy to contribute to the country's high-quality development.