Electric car plates show spark in Beijing

Applications for electric car plates reached 4,785 in February, data from Beijing Traffic Committee shows. The annual quota, meanwhile, totaled 20,000.

Beijing now has a separate car plate lottery pool for domestic made fully-electric cars, and the application requirements for individuals are the same as that of general cars, Beijing News reported Monday, quoting Beijing Traffic Committee.

Although some of the rules for electric cars are different. Electric car plates are meant only for electric cars and cannot be used on petrol vehicles. When an electric car is sold or scraped, the owner will have to buy another electric car if they want to use the plate. The electric car user should have a place to install charging poles, or at least have solutions to recharge.

The State Grid says it has 64 recharging stations and battery replacing stations in Beijing. But earlier reports found that only public buses and taxies are using these facilities.

Recharging stations require a prepaid card especially made by the State Grid, and only organizations are qualified to apply for the card. Some individual electric car owners are able to obtain these cards thanks to assistance by some organizations.