New rules threaten to wipe out 90% of China's 200-plus e-car startups

Beijing

CHINA'S electric-vehicle (EV) industry, with 200-plus companies backed by a raft of billionaires, is on the verge of a massive shakeout as the government imposes stricter technology standards on fledgling manufacturers and considers limiting their number to only 10.

Any curbs would be aimed at weeding out the weak, said a senior executive with the state-backed auto manufacturers' association, and they may push as many as 90 per cent of EV startups towards extinction, a government-linked newspaper said.