Shougang, one of China’s biggest steel makers, made a 19.5 million yuan ($3 mln) profit from offloading surplus CO2 allowances in the first two years of the Beijing emissions trading scheme, it said Thursday, plugging some of its shrinking profits in troubled times for China’s manufacturers.

Eight of its subsidiaries are covered by Beijing’s market, making it the second biggest compliance company in the capital’s ETS, according to the Shougang Daily, the company newspaper.

Beijing carbon allowances have hovered around 50 yuan since the market opened in November 2013, suggesting Shougang has sold around 400,000 allowances.

The company did not say if its surplus permits stemmed from reduced steel production at its still operating facilities, or if the units had been given to factories that have since relocated.

Shougang reported a net loss of 96 million yuan in 2014, in line with the general trend in China that has seen manufacturers struggle amid falling demand and a government push to reduce the country’s reliance on the secondary industry.

The company has gradually been moving facilities out of Beijing to nearby Tianjin amid growing pressure to clean up Beijing’s polluted air. Over 2013-2017, the municipal government aims to relocate around 1,200 factories away from Beijing.

By Stian Reklev – stian@carbon-pulse.com

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