In an effort to reach their target of having 5-million EVs on their roads by 2020, Chinese authorities are doing everything they can to make it happen. One of these efforts is the recent signing of a contract between Chinese EV maker Zheijang Kandi Vehicles Co. (or just simply Kandi) and the local government of the city of Hangzhou, home to 8-million inhabitants.
The contract stipulates that 20,000 vehicles will be leased in the area, to check the viability of EV-to-grid technology in the real world. The program starts next month and lasts until the end of next year. The vehicle they will be leasing is a small city runabout with a top speed of 40 km/h (25 mph), and according to a Forbes estimate, the manufacturer will make around €5,500 ($6,800) per each vehicle leased, or €110- ($135-) million in total.
We say that the program will prove successful, especially in China, a country which lacks any real car culture and tradition, being all the better for it, because Chinese buyers may have never owned a petrol or diesel car, and they will be able to adapt much more easily to an EV than somebody who has driven a conventional car for, say, 20 years.