On March 31, the PRD’s first large-scale charging station for electric buses opened for use at Tan Cun bus depot in Baiyun District. The station, which currently features over 30 power units, is set to expand to include around 200 units by June, and will be open to private cars as well.
To coincide with the station’s completion, Guangzhou plans to release 300 all-electric public buses this May, fresh off the production line at BYD Auto – the world’s best-selling manufacturer of highway legal plug-in electric vehicles, headquartered in Shenzhen.
The promotion of electric vehicles across China was a key point of discussion at this year’s two sessions, which identified sustainability as one of the country’s chief policy considerations going forward.
Guangdong is already one of the leading regions for alternative fuel automobiles. Shenzhen claimed the largest fleet of electric vehicles in the world earlier this year, with 2,000 EV vehicles – 1,300 buses and 700 taxis. Guangzhou, too, hosts a number of electric cars and charging stations, with a Tesla power center located in the underground parking lot of Canton Place.
Foreign investment in the region is also encouraging cleaner technologies. Earlier this month, Siemens announced it would introduce new electric vehicle manufacturing equipment in the PRD this year.
Unlike hybrid electric buses – which were recently found to use more fuel than normal ones in Hong Kong – all-electric buses run solely on electricity and are propelled by one or more electric motors powered by rechargeable battery packs.
Guangzhou and Shenzhen both plan to continue replacing fuel-powered public vehicles with cleaner alternatives in an effort to curb emissions.
[Cover image via QCWP]
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