(June 24): China’s exports of electric vehicles climbed to an all-time high in May, extending a surge that has been fuelled by higher oil prices linked to the war in Iran. Overall exports of electricity technologies, including solar panels and batteries, remained near record levels.
Shipments of electric vehicles reached US$9.2 billion ($11.9 billion), up almost 50% from the same period a year ago, according to China’s General Administration of Customs. The increase is a sign of the country’s growing competitive edge in advanced transport and rising global demand for alternatives to fossil fuels.
When monthly exports of other electricity technologies, such as heat pumps and grid equipment are included, the total is 6% below the record reached in March. Much of the decline can be explained by the drop in solar photovoltaic and battery exports, which are down 51% and 16%, respectively. The retreat in solar followed the expiration of export tax rebates on April 1.
Disruptions to fossil-fuel supplies stemming from the US and Israel’s attack on Iran and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz have bolstered interest in China’s clean-energy products.
“The current energy crisis has reinforced the value of electrification as a pathway to greater energy security, reduced fuel import exposure and long-term transport cost savings,” said Lam Pham, energy analyst for Asia at Ember.
Analysts at BloombergNEF also expect demand for electrification to keep growing. “Technologies that enable net fossil-fuel importing countries to decouple from geoeconomic uncertainty may gain added impulse,” the analysts concluded in the recently published New Energy Outlook.
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