This year's policies have sent positive signals to low-speed electric vehicles. In October, low-speed electric vehicles were recognized as legal, and in November, the standards working group meeting advanced the legalization process. However, the meeting also revealed directions such as lithium batteries and speed increases. Should battery types be restricted? What kind of technical standards can better guide the development of low-speed electric vehicles? How far away is the spring for low-speed electric vehicles? On December 8, industry experts, scholars, and corporate executives jointly explored the development direction of low-speed electric vehicles at the "2016 Micro Electric Vehicle Industry Summit Forum and Annual Ceremony".
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Wei Xueqin: The spring of national electric vehicles will surely come.
Shandong is the earliest base for the development of low-speed electric vehicles and has the largest concentration of manufacturers. Wei Xueqin, Executive Vice President and Secretary-General of the Shandong Automobile Industry Association (hereinafter referred to as the "Association"), the earliest organization to propose and implement self-regulatory standards for the low-speed electric vehicle industry, believes that with the dual effects of policy support and corporate efforts, the spring of electric vehicles for the general public will surely arrive. According to the latest statistics from the Association, as of November this year, Shandong's production and sales of low-speed electric vehicles reached 546,100 and 542,500 units respectively, representing year-on-year increases of 53.76% and 54.44%.
Wei Xueqin
Secondly, the low-speed electric vehicle industry is showing positive changes in policy, market, and products, especially in the general improvement of product performance. Wei Xueqin introduced that in the first National Small Electric Vehicle Testing Competition held by the association in May 2016, among the 84 participating models from 41 companies nationwide, 55% of the vehicles had speeds between 40-50 km/h, an average range of 140 km, 62% had a range of over 150 km, an average power consumption of 6.97 kWh per 100 km, and 75% of the participating vehicles had braking distances between 4-6 meters. 65% of the participating vehicles met all the test indicators of the Shandong Province's "Small Electric Vehicle" industry standard.
Furthermore, low-speed electric vehicle manufacturers have increased their brand awareness, leading to a further increase in market concentration. From January to October, the top five companies in Shandong produced a total of 346,600 small electric vehicles, accounting for over 70% of the total output of the 22 companies within the alliance. Moreover, these companies are actively expanding into overseas markets. In May 2016, Shandong Meilad Company signed an export order for 72,000 vehicles with India's Nam Group, amounting to over 2.7 billion RMB.
Yang Yusheng: Standards for low-speed electric vehicles should not restrict the type of battery.
The development of low-speed electric vehicles has been fraught with controversy, one point of contention being the use of lead-acid batteries. Yang Yusheng, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, stated that the first meeting of the working group on the "Technical Standards for Four-Wheel Low-Speed Electric Vehicles," held on November 18th, revealed a signal that low-speed electric vehicles can only use lithium-ion batteries, not lead-acid batteries, which he considers unreasonable. He believes that all types of battery materials have their advantages and disadvantages, and that various battery types should be allowed to develop in a level playing field. Simply restricting battery types will hinder the development of new battery materials. The market should have the final say on which batteries to use in low-speed electric vehicles.
Yang Yusheng
Furthermore, double standards should not be applied to lead-acid batteries. Yang Yusheng gave an example: every gasoline-powered car uses one lead-acid battery, and the hundreds of millions of gasoline-powered cars nationwide represent hundreds of millions of lead-acid batteries used. Vehicles such as start-stop vehicles, sightseeing vehicles, and logistics vehicles are also allowed to use lead-acid batteries. Why apply double standards and prohibit low-speed electric vehicles from using lead-acid batteries?
Furthermore, regarding the issue of tiered utilization of used batteries, Yang Yusheng believes that the scale of using used power batteries for energy storage needs to be reduced. This is because older lithium-ion batteries often experience "sudden death," making it problematic to use retired electric vehicle batteries for large-scale energy storage. Using them in electric bicycles for tiered utilization is relatively more suitable from both a safety and efficiency perspective.
Chen Shiquan: Standard setting must be a top priority
While policy is certainly one factor hindering the development of low-speed electric vehicles, their disorderly and unregulated development has also led to numerous criticisms regarding product safety, performance, quality, and unlicensed driving. Li Qingwen, Vice President of the China-Europe Economic and Technological Cooperation Association and President of the Independent Automobile Industry Branch, believes that standard management remains the most fundamental aspect of management for both electric and traditional vehicles. However, low-speed electric vehicles are a uniquely Chinese phenomenon, and therefore, the standard-setting process should be conducted in an open and transparent manner, with Chinese leadership, and the participation of both enterprises and users.
Chen Shiquan
Chen Shiquan, deputy director of the National Automotive Standardization Electric Vehicle Professional Committee and professor at Tsinghua University, also stated that it is necessary to clearly define low-speed electric vehicles, formulate corresponding product technical standards, clarify the safety technical performance that micro electric vehicles should meet, and establish and improve the market access and supervision system for micro electric vehicles, as well as corresponding usage management measures. Furthermore, he believes that for automakers to break through, they must master core technologies and possess product competitiveness, and the innovative spirit of the technology development team is essential for the healthy and sustainable development of the company.
Zong Yi, General Manager of the Brand Center of Yujie Group, believes that consumers currently lack awareness of the concept of low-speed electric vehicles. As the industry rapidly develops, companies should establish brand concepts, standardize and productize their products, and develop micro-electric vehicles in a more far-reaching direction. Moreover, they must be fast-moving rather than large-scale players in the industry, adapting to market changes as quickly as possible. For companies, in a rapidly changing market, the situation and inherent advantages can change in an instant.
