China Emerging as the Biggest Battleground for Electric Vehicles... "Over 50% Electric Vehicle Share by 2035"

Estimated 15 Million Units for China's Electric Vehicle Market by 2035
US Electric Vehicle Market at One-Quarter of China's Size... Accelerating EV Development
EU Doubles Electric Vehicle Numbers in One Year Due to Environmental Regulations

[Asia Economy Beijing=Correspondents Youngshin Cho and Hyunwoo Lee] As the Chinese government unveiled a roadmap to replace 6 out of 10 new cars sold in 2025 with eco-friendly vehicles, mainland China is emerging as the fiercest battleground in the electric vehicle market. At the same time, not only European automakers but also U.S. car companies have been rushing to announce strategies to strengthen their electric vehicle offerings since the inauguration of the Joe Biden administration, signaling intense competition among American, European, and Chinese companies for market dominance.

◇China to Have 50% Electric Vehicles by 2035

Electric sports car from Chinese electric vehicle brand NIO
[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to the Chinese State Council’s “Eco-friendly Vehicle Industry Development Plan” and the China Society of Automotive Engineers’ “New Energy Vehicle Technology Roadmap 2.0” released on the 8th, the Chinese government plans to convert 20% of new car sales in 2025 to electric vehicles and 40% to hybrid vehicles. Furthermore, the share of electric vehicles is set to expand to 40% by 2030 and 50% by 2035.

Guotai Junan Securities recently estimated that the size of China’s new car market in 2025 will be 26.81 million units. Based on the government’s eco-friendly vehicle roadmap, this means a market of 16 million eco-friendly vehicles will open in five years. The share of pure electric vehicles (including hydrogen vehicles) is expected to reach 5.3 million units, about 20% of new car sales. By 2035, the size of China’s electric vehicle market is projected to exceed 15 million units, accounting for 50% of new car sales.

Accordingly, mainland China is likely to become a major battleground for new energy vehicles following internal combustion engine cars. Analysts suggest that GM and Ford’s announcements to heavily invest in electric vehicles after President Biden signed the executive order to rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement on his first day in office are aimed at the Chinese market. A Beijing automotive industry official said, “As carbon neutrality and environmental issues have become core global concerns, interest in new energy vehicles is growing. Considering that China is the world’s largest automobile market, mainland China will ultimately become the battleground for new energy vehicles.”

Recently, Chinese media have also been flooding with articles related to the Chinese electric vehicle industry. The state-run People’s Daily reported on the 27th of last month that “China accounts for about 50% of global electric vehicle sales, making it the world’s largest market,” and “by the end of last year, 4 million electric vehicles (cumulative) had already been registered in China.”

◇U.S.: "Capture the Chinese Electric Vehicle Market"

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

After President Biden signed the executive order to rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement on his first day in office, the U.S. automotive industry has been rolling out electric vehicle business plans.

Ford, one of the largest U.S. automakers, announced on the 4th (local time) that it will invest a total of $29 billion (approximately 32.6 trillion KRW) in electric and autonomous vehicle development by 2025. Earlier, GM, the largest U.S. automaker, announced on the 28th of last month that it will cease sales of internal combustion engine vehicles by 2035. GM plans to invest $27 billion in electric vehicle development by 2023. Chrysler also withdrew its lawsuit against the California state government over stricter emission regulations and decided to join the Biden administration’s electric vehicle promotion efforts.

President Biden has introduced electric vehicle support measures such as replacing all federal government fleet vehicles with electric vehicles and strengthening electric vehicle subsidies. While the surface reason for the Biden administration’s push for electric vehicles is its long-emphasized climate change response and eco-friendly policies, analysts say it also contains a strategy to reclaim the electric vehicle sector that China has encroached upon. Compared to the fame of Tesla, the symbol of electric vehicles, the size of the U.S. electric vehicle market remains modest.

◇Europe: "Electric Vehicle Sales Doubled in One Year"

Volkswagen's pure electric SUV vehicle, ID.4
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Europe has long since transitioned to electric and other eco-friendly vehicles. Last year, the European Union (EU) strengthened environmental regulations and actively promoted electric vehicle development and adoption, doubling the number of electric vehicle registrations compared to the previous year. The total number of electric vehicle registrations in the EU last year was 1.33 million, slightly surpassing China’s 1.25 million electric vehicle registrations. To increase electric vehicle registrations, Germany provided subsidies of 6,000 euros for electric vehicles and 4,500 euros for hybrid vehicles priced below 40,000 euros last year, which is a 50% increase from previous subsidies. Germany also plans to expand electric vehicle charging stations to 1 million by 2030. France extended the subsidy payment period until July this year to stimulate the electric vehicle market, and the UK has invested 2.8 billion pounds to expand electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.