Here comes China - part five

In 2009, the Chinese Government designated five cities, including Shenzhen, Shanghai and Beijing, as the test ground for using clean-energy vehicles for public transportation and city trucks and cars, and then added seven more urban centres to that list. This market push will accelerate the installation of the vital charging stations and, in turn, make private ownership of e-cars viable.In addition, Beijing announced subsidies of up to $8,784 US to hybrid and e-car makers in mid 2010.

 

In China, there are more than a million taxis on the streets and they are all owned or controlled by some level of government, so this is a good launch pad for e-car sales. BYD has recently invested in Pengcheng Electric Taxi Company with Shenzhen Bus Group, which is controlled by the city government. BYD pure electric cars are now being used in a taxi rollout by Pengcheng Electric Taxi Company.

 

BYD Auto has grown from BYD, one of the largest battery makers in China. It offers both hybrid and pure electric cars. The pure electric cars are unusual in having range up to 300 kilometers but this comes at a cost and the BYD cars are not yet selling well. Nonetheless, such is the interest in BYD and its lithium iron phosphate batteries that escape the price hikes and occasional thermal runaway of cobalt, US investor Warren Buffet has made a paper profit of one billion dollars in one year by taking a minority of BYD shares.

 

 

 

The e6 taxis are roomy, comfortable and look like a lot of other sedans on the road. This is the car that BYD is planning to launch in the United States in late 2010, priced at just over $40,000. They drive like any other car, according to the taxi company manager. However, the air conditioning is gated at half power so the battery can cope but heating is only a minor problem. The electric motors naturally generate heat, so keeping the car warm drains much less electricity. A full charge takes one hour at a fast charging outlet, two hours at a medium outlet and four hours at low-voltage stations. From only three charging stations for the e6 in Shenzhen, each with up to half a dozen individual chargers, there are but plans underway for many, more. The e6 taxis go 140 km/h and have 0-100 kilometres acceleration in 9.2 seconds.

 

 

 

Canwest News reports that the taxi drivers have to book an appointment to charge up their purely electric e6 cars. There are only three charging stations in the city so far, but it was not a problem because only 30 of these e-cabs were on the road in May. BYD hoped to have 100 on the streets by the end of June and maybe 560 by the end of 2010 and 1,500 in operation by the end of 2011.

 

 

These red and white taxis have "zero emission" printed on them and emblazoned across the back in Chinese characters is the announcement: "This is not a conventional car; this is a declaration of environmental protection." This program is part of the Shenzhen government has plan to have 12,750 electric vehicles in use by 2012, primarily as public buses, government cars and private cars.

 

 

 

Also attend: Future of Electric Vehicles which uniquely covers the whole electric vehicle market - land, sea, air whether hybrid or pure EV - with emphasis on future breakthroughs. Tianjin Polytechnic University China and Everspring Global Ltd Hong Kong will give presentations.