China's electric bicycle production is expected to maintain an annual growth rate of at least 80 percent in the next five years, driven by efforts to save energy and clean the environment.

 

The country, once known as the kingdom of bicycles, will churn out 30 million electricity-driven bikes in 2010, compared to 9 million bikes last year.

 

So said a report drafted by the Development Research Centre under the State Council and other ministries such as the National Development and Reform Commission.

 

"There is huge market demand for the product in the country, as the Chinese government has highlighted the issues of energy conservation and environmental improvement," said Yang Jianlong, a director at the Development Research Centre and one of those involved in writing the report.

 

The central government wants to reduce the amount of energy consumed by as much as 20 percent within the next five years. That would be achieved through introducing new sources of energy as well as encouraging people to save energy.

 

Fumes from car exhausts are a major cause of pollution darkening the sky in Chinese cities, especially Beijing.

 

Industry experts yesterday called for the government to come up with more preferential policies to spread the use of electric bikes in China.

 

Electric bike production in China accounts for about 90 percent of the world's total, making China the world's biggest producer, consumer and exporter of the energy-efficient vehicle, the report said.

 

The country last year sold about 3 million electric bikes to foreign countries, a figure expected to double to 6 million in five years.

 

By 2010, the production value of the electric bike industry in China is expected to be 70 billion yuan (US$8.6 billion), almost four times the current level, it said.

 

Ni Jie, chairman of Luyuan Electric Vehicle Co Ltd based in east China's Zhejiang Province, said his company sold 90,000 electric bikes in the first four months of this year, a year-on-year increase of around 95 percent.

 

"Demand for the electric bike is robust in China, and I expect this rapid increase to continue in the following years," Ni said.

 

An electric bike uses very little electricity which costs only 90 yuan (US$11) per year, if calculated on current tariffs set by the Chinese government.

 

It is quite common to see people traveling on electric bikes in Beijing at peak times.

 

There are obstacles preventing the full development of the industry due to a lack of policy incentives and industry standards, experts said yesterday.

 

As current regulations do not specify the electric bike as a motor vehicle or non-motor vehicle, many local governments ban the use of electric bikes just to simplify their management.

 

Yang yesterday said government departments are working to amend regulations with the aim of pushing the use of electric bikes and cars in China to save energy and improve the environment.

 

(China Daily May 16, 2006)