Gasgoo.com (Shanghai February 24) - The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has announced new set of plan for the development of material industries during the Twelfth Five-Year Guideline, Caijing reported today. According to the plan, cumulative production and sales numbers of new energy vehicles in China will exceed 500,000 units by the end of the Guideline, which concludes in 2015. That amount will require 150 kilowatt hours of battery energy per year.

However, for China to achieve production and sales numbers of 500,000 units by 2015 may not be that simple. According to Cui Dongshu, assistant secretary of the China Passenger Car Association, the country currently has no way meet those numbers unless the government invests more into the industry. Although statistics from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers show that new energy vehicle sales grew significantly last year, the total number on the streets is still relatively small. Production and sales numbers in 2011 totaled 8,368 and 8,159 vehicles, respectively.

The lackluster sales have not muted enthusiasm from local authorities. The government of Guangdong's economic hub of Shenzhen plans to have 4,500 new energy vehicles on its roads this year, while Hefei, Anhui and Hangzhou, Zhejiang each have yearly goals of over 20,000 vehicles.

According to Wang De'an, analyst from Ping An Securities, there are around 15,000 new energy vehicles on the roads in model cities throughout the country. This is far less of the government's goal of 250,000 vehicles. Four government committees released guidelines for promoting industry growth last November.

Ordinary drivers in the country have yet to take to new energy vehicles en masse. According to Liu Siyang, chief researcher at Samsung Economic Research Institute, the Chinese government has invested much more into the industry than those of developed countries. However, there has not been equal interest from private buyers.

It will not be easy for the country to meet its electric vehicles goals, Mr. Cui stated.