China's green automakers — champions of smart mobility

I witnessed a collision at the 2024 Beijing International Automotive Exhibition — that of innovation and progress. Throngs of energetic visitors appeared to feed off the powerful, colorful, shapely beasts on display, whose engines' horsepower specs and other tech details showcased the rapid strides made by the auto industry, especially its electric vehicle sector. The expo was a testimony that the world's largest auto market is fully embracing a high-tech and green future.

Even until a decade back, car expos were known to attract visitors, especially males, as much for their latest vehicle models as for the female models that heightened the event's glamor and oomph. Not anymore. The focus has shifted to the titans of industry. Media cameras now chase visionary entrepreneurs such as Lei Jun, CEO of Xiaomi; Li Xiang, CEO of Chinese NEV startup Li Auto; and Li Bin, CEO of Nio. Their endeavors have been driving China's new energy vehicle sector, which is known for its innovations.

At the sprawling exhibition halls, I sensed a pattern emerge, reflecting the accelerating pace of China's automotive prowess. Between 2020, when the exhibition was last held, and this year, a remarkable transformation has taken place, with Chinese carmakers ramping up efforts to catch up with their foreign counterparts. Homegrown brands like BYD, Great Wall Motor and Xpeng hire vast exhibition spaces to showcase a diverse array of their latest NEVs.

Themed "Driving to Smart Mobility", the recently concluded 10-day expo captivated nearly 900,000 visitors with its sheer scale and innovation. Automakers unveiled 117 new models, while 278 NEVs were put on display.

The show came as NEV sales hit a milestone in the first half of April, accounting for more than 50 percent of cars sold in the country, as per data from the China Automobile Dealers Association.

During the January-March period, China's production and sales of NEVs reached 2.12 million and 2.09 million units, respectively, reporting growth of 28.2 percent and 31.8 percent year-on-year. NEV sales accounted for over 30 percent of cars sold in China in the first quarter, data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers showed.

Xiao Xinjian, director of the Research Department II of Xi Jinping Thought on Economy Study Center, said China's burgeoning NEV sector enjoys huge growth potential, effectively driving the nation's green transition and providing the world with China's solution for green and low-carbon development.

Xiao noted that China's edge in the NEV sector is powered by market forces, especially sufficient market competition, expressing optimism and confidence about the sector's future growth prospects.

According to a report by the International Energy Agency, global EV sales are estimated to reach 45 million units in 2030, more than triple the global sales in 2023 and 4.5 times that of 2022.

Xiao dismissed the allegation by some Western countries that China's green industries are hammering global industrial chains with "overcapacity", saying "the capacity utilization rates of China's large NEV makers stand at a reasonable level of around 80 percent to 82 percent".

"The robust growth of China's new energy vehicle industry has met the global demand for quality products, contributing to global efforts to address climate change and build a green and low-carbon system," Xiao said.