‘Key pillar’: the 5-year powerhouse plan for China’s car industry

China is set to secure its place among the global automotive powerhouses by 2030 through further efforts to boost domestic sales and foster technological innovation, while a capacity alert mechanism will be introduced to guard against disorderly competition.

The ambitious targets and actions are laid out in the country’s 15th five-year plan for the development of the intelligent connected new-energy-vehicle industry, unveiled on Thursday by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and eight other ministries. The new-energy category comprises both battery-powered electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid models.

According to the plan, China would further shore up its complete industrial supply-chain strengths in the sector and prepare for the large-scale roll-out of vehicles equipped with automated driving functions.

“[By 2030] the automotive sector will solidify its standing as a key pillar of the national economy,” the plan stated.

“The timing for rolling out this five-year plan is well judged,” said Cui Dongshu, secretary general of the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA). “The auto industry is undergoing structural transformation; total domestic sales are declining, as market leadership shifts from gasoline-powered passenger vehicles to electric cars.”

Data from the CPCA showed around 1 million electric passenger vehicles were sold domestically in August, down 10.1 per cent from a year earlier. Total sales in the January-August period fell 12.1 per cent year on year.