In recent years, China’s consumption of new energy has shown a rapid growth trend. Data shows that by the end of 2022, China had a total of approximately 13.1 million new energy vehicles, accounting for more than half of the global total. However, overall, the new energy market in rural areas of China is still in its early stages. Looking to the future, with the gradual improvement of the overall market structure, the rural new energy vehicle market holds immense market opportunities and is a blue ocean for future development. However, for a long time, issues such as insufficient charging infrastructure, inadequate supply of economically practical vehicle models, and insufficient sales and service capabilities have greatly restricted the promotion and use of new energy vehicles. This year, supporting the deployment of new energy vehicles in rural areas has been raised to a new strategic height. The recently released “Implementation Opinions” focuses on addressing the “charging anxiety” in the use of new energy vehicles in rural areas, breaking through bottlenecks, and better meeting residents’ usage needs. Prior to this, in early May, the executive meeting of the State Council approved the opinions on accelerating the development of advanced manufacturing clusters, proposing to accelerate the deployment and construction of charging infrastructure to better support the promotion of new energy vehicles in rural areas and rural revitalization. According to data, from 2020 to 2022, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the Ministry of Commerce, and the National Energy Administration jointly carried out activities to promote the use of new energy vehicles in rural areas. Over the three-year period, a total of nearly 200 models of vehicles for rural areas were released in six batches, driving the cumulative sales of new energy vehicles in rural areas to exceed 4.1 million units.
Among them, small new energy vehicles have become an important force in promoting the promotion of new energy vehicles in rural areas. On one hand, small new energy vehicles have a relatively high cost-performance ratio, making the entry cost for ordinary people relatively low. On the other hand, the compactness of small new energy vehicles can also cover the short-distance transportation needs of a wider age group. Some perceptive automakers have also seized this trend. For example, over the years, Wuling has been deeply involved in the small new energy vehicle market, providing a diverse product lineup to rural residents for purchasing new energy vehicles and the Hongguang MINIEV family now offers up to a 13,000 RMB discount, along with an upfront payment as low as 19,800 RMB and a monthly battery fee of 198 RMB, making it easier and more affordable for low-income individuals and families to purchase a car. These preferential policies greatly improve the quality of life at minimal cost and reduce the threshold for car ownership among low-income groups and families.
