China's New Energy Automobile Industry Development Strategy Research

Since 1990s, Alternative Fuel Vehicles like Hybrid Electric Vehicle, Electric Vehicle and Fuel Cell Vehicle were emerging as the development of automobile technology. In recent years, with the soaring crude oil price due to shortage of supply and rising demand on environment protection, the R&D and commercialization activities were highly invested, especially in US, Europe, Japan, Brazil and etc. As an emerging giant, China is increasingly suffering from high dependency on imported crude oil due to soaring vehicle sales and also the growing demand on oil. Meanwhile, increasing consumption of oil and quick industrialization are leading to heavy pollution and exhaustion of greenhouse gas. Therefore, China is highly expected to rely on Alternation Fuel Vehicles that may secure national energy supply by reducing the dependency on oil, promote environment protection and sustainable development, and also bring a great opportunity of leaps on technology for domestic automakers. However, Alternative Fuel Vehicles are highly diverse in technologies and also characterized by different levels of technology maturity, cost, fuel, cleanness and etc. Furthermore, the commercialization of Alternative Fuel Vehicles needs heavy investment on fuel and infrastructure development, market demand extension, substitution to traditional vehicles and etc. Therefore, it will be an important issue for China to design reasonable technology development roadmap and commercialization strategy for Alternative Fuel Vehicles according to the fact of China and the traits of different Alternative Fuel Vehicles technologies.This paper concentrates on this argument and then outspread from it. Based on the theories of Industrial Economics, Technology Innovations, Sustainable Development, combining with criterion research and demonstration analysis, qualitative analysis and quantitative analysis, this paper uses demonstration research to analyze the development strategy of Alternative Fuel Vehicles for China. Firstly, based on the definition and traits of Alternative Fuel Vehicles, combining with the experiences and policies of developed countries like US, Europe and Japan, this paper analyzes the strategic environment that China is facing to develop Alternative Fuel Vehicles, which includes production factors, relative supporting industries, demand conditions and market structure within this industry. Secondly, based on the traits of different Alternative Fuel Vehicles and the fact of China, this paper analyzes the technology roadmap that China should follow in short term, mid term and long term. Furthermore, based on this roadmap, China should accordingly set up R&D system and commercialization system that includes fuel and infrastructure development, market demand extension, substitution to traditional vehicles and etc. Finally, this paper poses the suggestions on policy on the development of Alternative Fuel Vehicle in China based on the analysis on the fact of relative policies in China.