China to boost new energy vehicles

The State Council on Monday issued a guideline to promote new energy vehicles, highlighting construction of charging facilities and elimination of regional protectionism.

The guideline called for layouts of charging facilities to be mapped and technological standards to be made, and non-governmental funds are encouraged to participate in construction of charging facilities.

Among the 25 specific policies issued Monday, seven aim to improve charging facilities through urban planning, electricity prices and technological improvements.

Local governments are not allowed to make their own standards on new energy vehicles and charging facilities, and they are not allowed to put additional requirements on auto producers to impede new energy autos from entering local markets, according to the guideline.

The public sector will take the lead in using new energy autos, the guideline said.

New energy vehicles should be no less than 30 percent of the total newly purchased vehicles in government departments in the coming two years, according to the guideline.

Consumers will enjoy tax cuts to buy new energy vehicles from Sept. 1, 2014 to Dec. 31, 2017, it said.

The new policies are a followup to the Energy-Saving and New Energy Automobile Industry Development Layout (2012-2020) issued in 2012, and they will energize the market and boost the healthy development of the sector, said Miao Wei, minister of industry and information technology.

China produced 20,692 and sold 20,477 new energy automobiles in the first half of the year, up 18.01 and 16.07 percent from 2013's total production and sales respectively.