 In
late September, Hong Kong announced a major green initiative;
the promotion of electric vehicles. This announcement makes Hong
Kong the first market in Asia other than Japan, in which
electric vehicles (EV) will be sold before April, 2010.
Secretary for the Environment Mr. Edward Yau said, "The
Government has been pursuing collaboration with various EV
manufacturers including Mitsubishi, Nissan and BYD. We also
began the trial on Mitsubishi's EV 'i MiEV' in May. So far,
testing results have been positive. The first batch supply of 'i
MiEV' will be launched progressively before April 2010. The
Government will procure 10 units in this batch for deployment in
different bureaus and departments. This will enable us to test
the performance of EVs comprehensively under different
operational environment."
A major roadblock to the adoption of EV in western countries has
been the lack of charging facilities. But Hong Kong has that
covered. Two local power companies will launch charging
facilities near the end of 2009 which will help facilitate the
sale and adoption of EVs. As a result, it is anticipated that
commercial EVs such as vans, minibuses and trucks will be
available for sale to the public in Hong Kong sometime in mid-to
late-2010. |
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