Beijing's noxious smog is a reminder of why China needs to step up investments in clean energy. This includes promoting electric and hybrid cars as an alternative to gas-guzzling cars idling on clogged city roads. Yet for all the subsidies lavished on automakers in this carbon-free niche, none have made any serious headway. The much-praised Toyota Prius is supposedly sold in China, but I've never spotted one on the road in Beijing. As for BYD, the domestic battery maker turned automaker, its electric cars have yet to find a market outside of public procurement in its home base of Shenzhen. It suffered a bout of terrible publicity last year when a battery-powered e6 taxi caught fire in a collision. Relatives of the dead driver later sued the company, which claimed that the car wasn't at fault.
Reported by Forbes.com 2 hours ago.
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