Why must China develop a strong new energy vehicle industry? Chen Liquan, a member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, gave the answer in a recent speech delivered at the 2021 China EV100 Forum.
According to Chen, China is rich in coal but lacks natural gas and oil. In 2018, China is primarily relying on fossil energy, with coal, oil and natural gas together accounting for 85.6 percent of energy consumption and other energy sources accounting for 18.3 percent.
China produced 190 million tons of crude oil and imported 460 million in 2018, with an external dependence of 71 percent, he said, adding that the external dependence was originally recommended not to exceed 50 percent.
The number of cars in China is 240 million, and if we calculate that one car needs an average of 2 tons of oil, 460 million tons of crude oil imported is only enough for domestic cars, he said, "so we must develop electric cars to replace imported crude oil."
Compared to traditional fuel cars, electric vehicles do not require fossil fuels. Despite the shortcomings in range, the trend of developing electric vehicles in China now is certain.
At the same time, batteries are definitely needed to make devices smarter as well. That's why China wants transportation electrification, Chen said.
