Government to buy more ‘green’ cars
Print Edition
GOVERNMENT agencies across the country will be required to purchase more “green” cars under a plan released yesterday that has been hailed as a big step forward in the fight against pollution and the promotion of the new-energy vehicle market.
Under the plan, drawn up by five central government ministries and departments, at least 30 percent of all cars purchased for official use in the 2014-16 period must be new-energy. After 2016, the requirement will be increased year by year.
New-energy vehicles include electric, plug-in hybrids, fuel-cell and solar-powered models, according to the plan.
The document — produced by the National Government Offices Administration (NGOA), the National Development and Reform Commission, and the Ministries of Finance, Science and Technology, and Industry and Information Technology — applies also to government organs and public institutions in regions where controlling small particle emissions has become a challenging task in the fight against pollution, an NGOA spokesman said.
For this year alone, at least 15 percent of the new vehicles bought for local government departments and public institutions located in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, the Yangtze River Delta, and the Pearl River Delta will be powered by new-energy sources, he said.
To encourage the implementation of the plan, the central government has promised to subsidize all purchases of new-energy vehicles costing less than 180,000 yuan (US$29,000) and has ordered local authorities to build more facilities to encourage their use among the public.
According to the plan, the ratio of charging interfaces to new-energy vehicles should be not less than 1:1.
Also, local authorities should create dedicated parking spaces for new-energy vehicles, while preferential policies will be introduced for “green” cars in the license plate lottery, the plan said.
The plan is the second stimulus in a week to popularize the use of “green” vehicles. Last Wednesday, the central government announced that from September 1 through 2017, buyers of new-energy cars will be exempt from the 10 percent purchase tax.
Under yesterday’s plan, government bodies will be urged to buy more “green” cars, ownership of which has been limited despite the government’s long-running promotion, said an official in charge of assets management at the NGOA.
As early as January 2009, four ministries began promoting energy-saving and new-energy vehicles in 13 cities. In 2010, the scheme was rolled out to 12 more cities, most of them in eastern and central regions where industry is more developed and emission-reduction tasks are heavy.
Last year, the State Council published a road map for the energy industry’s development in 2011-15.
Under the plan, the government will “provide necessary conditions and support” for the development of the new-energy vehicle industry. Before the end of next year, the government plans to complete a network of charging services capable of serving half a million electric cars, it said.
Thanks to government promotions, “green” car manufacturers have mushroomed in China. Currently, 97 companies are capable of producing new-energy cars and 628 of their models are included in a catalog of government-approved vehicles.
But sales have been disappointing. In the first half of this year, output of new-energy vehicles posted two-fold growth year on year to 20,692, while wholesale sales expanded at a similar rate to 20,477.
Despite the robust growth, the sales figure accounted for less than 0.2 percent of the nearly 11.7 million vehicles of all types sold in the period.
China is the world’s biggest auto market by vehicles sold.
The poor sales do not reflect the attractive prices of “green” vehicles. In Beijing, for example, after deducting taxes and other subsidies, buyers have only to pay about 120,000 yuan for a 220,000-yuan E150EV model, a pure electric car produced by Beijing Automobile Works.
But owners have found it is as difficult to find charging facilities as it is to find a parking lot in the city jammed with 5.5 million cars.
Nonetheless, Hu Enping, a public relations executive with BAW’s new-energy vehicle division, is optimistic about the impact of the new plan, saying it will help boost consumer confidence.
“Most people worry about new-energy vehicles’ technological stability, mileage and charging services. If the government starts to buy more cars, it means these things have been improved,” he said.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
