The city of Shenzhen, on China’s southern east coast, began 2016 with the introduction of a brand new fleet of 400 electric buses. Chinese company Build Your Dreams (BYD) and a state-owned-enterprise, Guangzhou Automobile Group, coordinated the joint venture, mutually investing almost three billion yuan (US$470 million).
The project began in late 2015, when the provincial government of Guangzhou commissioned the two Chinese vehicle companies to produce a massive fleet of buses for the ever-growing metropolis that is Shenzhen. Together, these two companies have set up production facilities and aim to produce 5,000 electric buses yearly—beginning with the 400 sent to Shenzhen.
The mastermind behind the electric buses is the Chinese tech company BYD. With humble beginnings in 1995, BYD has succeeded in becoming a global leader as the world’s largest producer of lithium-ion batteries. Cell phone manufacturers, like Samsung, HTC, and Motorola all use BYD batteries.
In addition to batteries, BYD designs and manufactures electric vehicles, including buses, taxis, and personal cars. BYD’s great efforts in the electric car market have not gone unnoticed, with over 60,000 units sold in 2015—compared to 50,000 units sold by American manufacturer Tesla.
BYD’s recent success stems from an investment of US$230 million, from Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway. Alongside this American investment came extensive grants from the Chinese government in an aim to support a budding tech firm on home soil.
With climate change increasingly becoming a global concern, Chinese provincial and municipal governments have been surprisingly proactive in increasing sustainability efforts in the public transportation sector. With the implementation of over 100,000 electric buses in China, it is anticipated that, by mid-2020, every bus in Chinese municipalities will run on electricity—not fossil fuels.
This strive for sustainability could have an enormous impact on emissions, especially when considering the vast proportion of Chinese commuters who rely on public transit. Encouraging the growing Chinese middle-upper class to shift car purchases in the electric direction has been the Chinese government’s first proposal.
Policy makers have concentrated efforts to reduce emissions in the public transit sector, purchasing buses and taxis produced by BYD. Undoubtedly, this transition to cleaner burning alternatives will reduce air pollution in Chinese cities like Shenzhen. Fortunately, Shenzhen’s air quality has not yet reached the toxic levels found in the Chinese capital city of Beijing.
In spite of the optimism shown by the Chinese government, environmental activists remain skeptical, claiming that Chinese energy producers’ process of burning coal is comparable to fueling a car with gasoline, in terms of environmental degradation. Coal burning remains the major source of China’s energy, accounting for nearly three quarters of Chinese energy. Commentators have ensured that it’s likely that the Chinese energy sector will begin to shift to more sustainable energy production in the future.
Although relatively foreign to consumers in the west, BYD hopes to expand their horizons into global markets, aiming to compete with companies like Tesla Motors and Nissan. BYD is targeting integration in public transit markets in America and Europe, acknowledging the difficulties that encompass the personal vehicle market.
Stanford University and the Los Angeles Metro have already taken an environmentally conscious route by deploying BYD buses. Compared to cities like London and Hong Kong, the American taxi market remains untouched. However, interest is developing in New York City and five BYD taxis have been delivered to Chicago for testing with the American startup company Uber.