VW plans to launch electric car in China this year

[SHANGHAI] Volkswagen's China Chief Jochem Heizmann said the carmaker plans to launch a pure battery electric vehicle in China this year amid continued uncertainty over how China's electric car quotas will be applied.

VW's Heizmann said a lack of clarity about whether electric car quotas would be softened, is forcing VW to push ahead with an aggressive launch schedule for electric cars in China. "The rules look like they are being revised," Heizmann said, adding that Chinese authorities have not yet clarified how a system of credits for so-called New Energy Vehicles (NEV)'s will be formalised.

A lobbying campaign from Berlin to persuade Chinese authorities to water down the proposals, may prove to be helpful, Heizmann said.

In China, policymakers have put forward proposals forcing carmakers to meet sales targets for electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid vehicles of 7 per cent in 2020 and 15 per cent in 2025.

REUTERS