diff --git a/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance/r3_compiler_compliance_spec.ts b/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance/r3_compiler_compliance_spec.ts
index 0550a4c64b..e8840b85e8 100644
--- a/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance/r3_compiler_compliance_spec.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler-cli/test/compliance/r3_compiler_compliance_spec.ts
@@ -222,6 +222,76 @@ describe('compiler compliance', () => {
       expectEmit(result.source, template, 'Incorrect template');
     });
 
+    it('should support <ng-container>', () => {
+      const files = {
+        app: {
+          'spec.ts': `
+              import {Component, NgModule} from '@angular/core';
+
+              @Component({
+                selector: 'my-component',
+                template: \`<ng-container><span>in a </span>container</ng-container>\`
+              })
+              export class MyComponent {}
+
+              @NgModule({declarations: [MyComponent]})
+              export class MyModule {}
+          `
+        }
+      };
+
+      // The template should look like this (where IDENT is a wild card for an identifier):
+      const template = `
+          …
+          template: function MyComponent_Template(rf, ctx) {
+            if (rf & 1) {
+              i0.ɵEC(0);
+              i0.ɵE(1, "span");
+              i0.ɵT(2, "in a ");
+              i0.ɵe();
+              i0.ɵT(3, "container");
+              i0.ɵeC();
+            }
+          }
+        `;
+
+      const result = compile(files, angularFiles);
+      expectEmit(result.source, template, 'Incorrect template');
+    });
+
+    it('should generate elementContainerStart/End instructions for empty <ng-container>', () => {
+      const files = {
+        app: {
+          'spec.ts': `
+              import {Component, NgModule} from '@angular/core';
+
+              @Component({
+                selector: 'my-component',
+                template: \`<ng-container></ng-container>\`
+              })
+              export class MyComponent {}
+
+              @NgModule({declarations: [MyComponent]})
+              export class MyModule {}
+          `
+        }
+      };
+
+      // The template should look like this (where IDENT is a wild card for an identifier):
+      const template = `
+          …
+          template: function MyComponent_Template(rf, ctx) {
+            if (rf & 1) {
+              i0.ɵEC(0);
+              i0.ɵeC();
+            }
+          }
+        `;
+
+      const result = compile(files, angularFiles);
+      expectEmit(result.source, template, 'Incorrect template');
+    });
+
     it('should bind to element properties', () => {
       const files = {
         app: {
diff --git a/packages/compiler/src/render3/r3_identifiers.ts b/packages/compiler/src/render3/r3_identifiers.ts
index f68d4a0ccc..7a96109e62 100644
--- a/packages/compiler/src/render3/r3_identifiers.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler/src/render3/r3_identifiers.ts
@@ -35,6 +35,10 @@ export class Identifiers {
 
   static elementClassProp: o.ExternalReference = {name: 'ɵcp', moduleName: CORE};
 
+  static elementContainerStart: o.ExternalReference = {name: 'ɵEC', moduleName: CORE};
+
+  static elementContainerEnd: o.ExternalReference = {name: 'ɵeC', moduleName: CORE};
+
   static elementStyling: o.ExternalReference = {name: 'ɵs', moduleName: CORE};
 
   static elementStylingMap: o.ExternalReference = {name: 'ɵsm', moduleName: CORE};
diff --git a/packages/compiler/src/render3/view/template.ts b/packages/compiler/src/render3/view/template.ts
index b47609cde1..be1add72d9 100644
--- a/packages/compiler/src/render3/view/template.ts
+++ b/packages/compiler/src/render3/view/template.ts
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ import * as html from '../../ml_parser/ast';
 import {HtmlParser} from '../../ml_parser/html_parser';
 import {WhitespaceVisitor} from '../../ml_parser/html_whitespaces';
 import {DEFAULT_INTERPOLATION_CONFIG} from '../../ml_parser/interpolation_config';
-import {splitNsName} from '../../ml_parser/tags';
+import {isNgContainer as checkIsNgContainer, splitNsName} from '../../ml_parser/tags';
 import * as o from '../../output/output_ast';
 import {ParseError, ParseSourceSpan} from '../../parse_util';
 import {DomElementSchemaRegistry} from '../../schema/dom_element_schema_registry';
@@ -276,6 +276,7 @@ export class TemplateDefinitionBuilder implements t.Visitor<void>, LocalResolver
     let i18nMeta: string = '';
 
     const [namespaceKey, elementName] = splitNsName(element.name);
+    const isNgContainer = checkIsNgContainer(element.name);
 
     // Elements inside i18n sections are replaced with placeholders
     // TODO(vicb): nested elements are a WIP in this phase
@@ -314,11 +315,11 @@ export class TemplateDefinitionBuilder implements t.Visitor<void>, LocalResolver
           selector, (sel: CssSelector, staticType: any) => { this.directives.add(staticType); });
     }
 
-    // Element creation mode
-    const parameters: o.Expression[] = [
-      o.literal(elementIndex),
-      o.literal(elementName),
-    ];
+    // Regular element or ng-container creation mode
+    const parameters: o.Expression[] = [o.literal(elementIndex)];
+    if (!isNgContainer) {
+      parameters.push(o.literal(elementName));
+    }
 
     // Add the attributes
     const attributes: o.Expression[] = [];
@@ -487,13 +488,15 @@ export class TemplateDefinitionBuilder implements t.Visitor<void>, LocalResolver
 
     const implicit = o.variable(CONTEXT_NAME);
 
-    const createSelfClosingInstruction =
-        !hasStylingInstructions && element.children.length === 0 && element.outputs.length === 0;
+    const createSelfClosingInstruction = !hasStylingInstructions && !isNgContainer &&
+        element.children.length === 0 && element.outputs.length === 0;
 
     if (createSelfClosingInstruction) {
       this.creationInstruction(element.sourceSpan, R3.element, trimTrailingNulls(parameters));
     } else {
-      this.creationInstruction(element.sourceSpan, R3.elementStart, trimTrailingNulls(parameters));
+      this.creationInstruction(
+          element.sourceSpan, isNgContainer ? R3.elementContainerStart : R3.elementStart,
+          trimTrailingNulls(parameters));
 
       // initial styling for static style="..." attributes
       if (hasStylingInstructions) {
@@ -671,7 +674,9 @@ export class TemplateDefinitionBuilder implements t.Visitor<void>, LocalResolver
 
     if (!createSelfClosingInstruction) {
       // Finish element construction mode.
-      this.creationInstruction(element.endSourceSpan || element.sourceSpan, R3.elementEnd);
+      this.creationInstruction(
+          element.endSourceSpan || element.sourceSpan,
+          isNgContainer ? R3.elementContainerEnd : R3.elementEnd);
     }
 
     // Restore the state before exiting this node
diff --git a/packages/core/src/render3/index.ts b/packages/core/src/render3/index.ts
index 841c7500b3..27b380c78c 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/render3/index.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/render3/index.ts
@@ -57,6 +57,9 @@ export {
   elementProperty as p,
   elementStart as E,
 
+  elementContainerStart as EC,
+  elementContainerEnd as eC,
+
   elementStyling as s,
   elementStylingMap as sm,
   elementStyleProp as sp,
diff --git a/packages/core/src/render3/jit/environment.ts b/packages/core/src/render3/jit/environment.ts
index 2c7abc0125..f35b926eff 100644
--- a/packages/core/src/render3/jit/environment.ts
+++ b/packages/core/src/render3/jit/environment.ts
@@ -50,6 +50,8 @@ export const angularCoreEnv: {[name: string]: Function} = {
   'ɵE': r3.E,
   'ɵe': r3.e,
   'ɵEe': r3.Ee,
+  'ɵEC': r3.EC,
+  'ɵeC': r3.eC,
   'ɵf0': r3.f0,
   'ɵf1': r3.f1,
   'ɵf2': r3.f2,