China to orderly ease NEV contract manufacturing: MIIT minister

China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) will orderly remove the restriction on the contract manufacturing of new energy vehicles (NEVs), Miao Wei, minister of the MIIT, said on May 25 on the “ministers’ passage” at this year’s two sessions.

He said the production and sales of NEVs took the same hit as that of traditional fuel-powered vehicles due to the coronavirus spread. The central government has drawn up some policies to boost the NEV development, of which the two-year extension on the NEV purchase tax exemption and subsidies is of particular concern to consumers.

Mr. Miao pointed out the country's NEV production capability in April almost rebounded to the year-ago level, which makes the authority feel confident in the future development. Going forward, the MIIT will continue to make efforts from the supply side, the demand side and the usage side.

As for the supply side, the MIIT will push forward with reforms that delegate power, improve regulation and upgrade services, and remove caps on the NEV contract manufacturing service in an orderly manner. Some capable companies will be allowed to conduct self-test and self-verification so as to avoid repetitive labors. Besides, the enterprises that work on the R&D of innovative NEVs will be authorized to promote their brands as pilot projects.

Regarding the demand side, the MIIT will support the development of battery swapping model, and encourage local authorities to use NEVs more in public service areas, such as buses, taxis and the vehicles used in law enforcement, logistics and environmental sanitation areas.

With respect to the usage front, Miao said the MIIT will carry forward the construction of EV charging or battery swapping infrastructures, and promote the connectivity among these facilities. Moreover, it will also encourage local governments to issue preferential policies related to such fields as parking and traffic for the sake of NEV popularization.