2014 marks a new beginning for new energy vehicles in China. As the technology becomes more mature, new energy vehicles are becoming more and more accessible to the common person. New favorable government policies are also helping speed up the industry supply chain, making the vehicles easier to make.
Major factors helping stimulate the market include partially and fully exempt taxes and new regulations for purchasing government use vehicles. Consumption and investment of new energy vehicles are on the rise. As the market continues to expand, so too does the speed of construction of new infrastructure, allowing for new investment opportunities in construction of charging posts, charging stations and battery technology.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel's official visit to China earlier this month echoed this newfound wave of optimism for new energy vehicles in China. At her meeting with Minister of Industry and Information Technology Miao Wei at Tsinghua University (pictured), Mrs. Merkel voiced her aspirations to see China and German work together to promote new energy vehicle technology, as both parties agreed to begin cooperating in the field of charging infrastructure.
According to the partnership agreement, both China and Germany are agreed on what the standards should be for charging outlets. Both countries also signed an agreement on the accessibility of charging technology, ensuring charging equipment can be shared by everyone.
Commenting on the news, a representative from BMW remarked: "Currently the relevant departments in the country have drafted the new national standards, which will hopefully be announced by next year."
Many in the industry agree that universal national standards will help promote the overall accessibility of charging infrastructure, as well as resolve the issue of company-specific standards that prevent certain automobiles from using certain infrastructure. However many also worry that changing standards for already constructed posts will result in high costs.
According to State Grid statistics, there are currently 600 charging stations and 26,000 charging posts in China. To update this infrastructure to match new standards will cost over ten billion RMB, some analysts warn.
However, there is also space for new business opportunities in this field. An industry analyst explains: "Automobile manufacturers should communicate with the government. During the application of universal standards, enterprises will be brought into to make assessments and do modifications." The analysts recommends that enterprises that invest in helping implement the standards be eligible for subsidies. which in turn will allow them to economically or even freely offer better service for their customers.
