Masses of cars are seen on a road in Beijing, China, July 17, 2008. As many as 5.5 million cars will be on Beijing city roads by 2015.
AP Photo
"China's Fuel Economy Standards for Passenger Vehicles: Rationale, Policy Process, and Impacts"
Journal Article, Energy Policy, volume 37, issue 11, pages 4720-4729
November 2009
Authors: Hongyan He Oliver, Former Research Fellow, Energy Technology Innovation Policy research group, 2004-2009, Kelly Sims Gallagher, Senior Associate, Energy Technology Innovation Policy research group, Donglian Tian, Jinhua Zhang
Belfer Center Programs or Projects: Energy Technology Innovation Policy; Environment and Natural Resources; Science, Technology, and Public Policy
ABSTRACT
China issued its first Fuel Economy Standards (FES) for light-duty passenger vehicles (LDPV) in September 2004, and the first and second phases of the FES took effective in July 2005 and January 2008, respectively. The stringency of the Chinese FES ranks third globally, following the Japanese and European standards. In this paper, we first review the policy-making background, including the motivations, key players, and the process; and then explain the content and the features of the FES and why there was no compliance flexibility built into it. Next, we assess the various aspects of the standard's impact, including fuel economy improvement, technology changes, shift of market composition, and overall fuel savings. Lastly, we comment on the prospect of tightening the existing FES and summarize the complementary policies that have been adopted or may be considered by the Chinese government for further promoting efficient vehicles and reducing transport energy consumption. The Chinese experience is highly relevant for countries that are also experiencing or anticipating rapid growth in personal vehicles, those wishing to moderate an increase in oil demand, or those desirous of vehicle technology upgrades.
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For Academic Citation:
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