China to unveil new auto plan, sell 1 mn electric cars

BEIJING - China, the world’s largest auto market, will unveil a new plan for its auto industry in December under which it plans to sell one million electric cars annually from 2015.

China is set to promote the use of its 20,000 new energy vehicles for public transport in a green campaign by the end of this year, the People’s Daily reported Tuesday.

As of October this year, the country had earmarked 970 million yuan (about $145 million) to subsidize new energy vehicles.

Xavier Peugeot, global director of Marketing & Communications, Peugeot, said: “We also want to demonstrate that electric cars can be seen in a different way, connected to performance…and I would say high performance.”

Dai Bingcheng, CEO of Zhongwen Yixing Electric Auto Co, said, “The electric bus sector has become more commercialised, and expanded faster than electric cars.”

“And the electric bus development has attracted more focus from the government, so we believe it’s a mature industry.”

By 2020, China is aiming to reduce energy consumption by 50 percent, and slash fuel consumption to five litres per 100 km. The electric bus sector has become more commercialised, and expanded faster than electric cars.

But some customers aren’t yet convinced. They say they still prefer traditional energy vehicles.

A customer said: “The current electric car market is not mature enough. I’m concerned about the costs of using it and the convenience of car maintenance. So, right now I will not consider buying it.”

Another customer said: “I will not buy an electric car because I’m worried the battery won’t last long enough.”

To address these concerns, Science & Technology Minister Wan Gang said: “In order to improve the current electric car standard system, the Ministry of Science and Technology will work with other ministries to set up a system to cater for electric vehicles.”