HONG KONG–(BUSINESS WIRE)–BYD
Company Ltd. announced solutions for electrifying Hong Kong City’s
public transport with plans to replace diesel buses and LPG taxis.
Experts anticipate that this will reduce Hong Kong’s vehicle emissions
nearly 56% ¹ (see note). BYD concurrently unveiled its plan
to introduce e6
pure electric taxis in the region in May of this year.

“Hong Kong has been dedicated to promoting green transport for quite
some time – electrifying public transportation will not only
significantly save costs, but it will also dramatically lower the city
vehicle emissions and improve air quality, creating a tremendous social
impact!”

Chuan-fu Wang, Chairman and President of BYD Company Limited, remarked,
“Hong Kong has been dedicated to promoting green transport for quite
some time – electrifying public transportation will not only
significantly save costs, but it will also dramatically lower the city
vehicle emissions and improve air quality, creating a tremendous social
impact!”

The first fleet of 45, BYD
e6 pure electric taxis are scheduled for launch in Hong Kong in
May of this year. Meanwhile, BYD and multiple partners have already
built and tested three charging stations in Oi Man Estate, Shek Wai Kok
Estate and Wong Tai Sin. The second batch of charging stations is
expected to be set up before May with the expectation that each taxi
will be complemented by a charging appliance. BYD is also collaborating
with local industry partners to pursue further developments in
electrified public transport for Hong Kong (including BYD
40-foot electric buses).

Public transport is one of the major sources of air pollution in cities.
Replacing the eighteen-thousand (18,000) LPG taxis and twelve-thousand
(12,000) diesel buses with electric taxis and buses would mean a
reduction in emissions equivalent to over eight-hundred-thousand
(800,000) private cars,¹ a leap towards an ultimate target:
low-city-noise, zero emissions and zero pollution. Electrified public
transport is one of the most important ways to reduce vehicle emissions
and improve roadside air pollution. In addition, given the difference in
price between fossil fuels and electricity, electric transport can also
help the transport industry save costs. For instance, each BYD e6 pure
electric taxi is capable of saving approx. one-hundred-ten-thousand HKD
(110,000HKD) annually in operating costs [Please refer to
Appendix 1].

BYD’s pure electric vehicles use an Iron-Phosphate
(or Fe) battery, which touts industry-leading safety
qualifications and superior life. The battery maintains high-performance
capabilities over long periods of use and can stably withstand extreme
conditions. Taking the e6 pure electric vehicle as an example, after
4,000 charging cycles, the capacity of the battery remains still remains
at above 75% of its original capacity, and the total mileage can reach
over one million (1,000,000) km. The
BYD e6 can completely fulfill the usage requirements of taxis
and private cars. Apart from this, the e6 pure electric vehicle has
passed all safety testing to international standards, and the K9 pure
electric bus has received the EC Whole Vehicle Type Approval (WVTA) and
US FMVSS safety certification.

Since 2010, BYD has conducted its electric vehicle commercial operations
on a large scale. As of the end of February this year, BYD had rolled
out 800, e6 pure electric taxis in Shenzhen, accumulating close to
fifty-five million (55M) km in total mileage. The mileage of a single
electric taxi is well over 300,000 km, which is equivalent to the total
mileage accumulated in more than 10 years of driving an average private
car. 200 K9 pure electric buses have been running in Shenzhen and have
exceeded fourteen million (14M) km in total mileage, which means each
vehicle has reached over 110,000 km on average. These electric vehicles
are operating steadily, without any apparent reduction in performance.
Electrified public transport is steadily gaining approval more countries
world-wide, thanks to the continuous advancement of electric vehicle
technologies and the successful examples of large-scale commercial
operations. BYD has engaged in these operations throughout China, and in
the Netherlands, the United States, Denmark, Colombia and the United
Kingdom. In London, England, for instance, BYD is introducing 50
e6 pure electric taxis and setting up the country’s first fleet
of electric vehicles. In Bogota, Colombia, BYD earlier introduced
49 e6 pure electric taxis, with trial operation slated to begin
this year. Public e6 electric vehicles will soon be operating on a large
scale in Hong Kong as well. As a major force behind the emerging global
trend, BYD continues to promote the development of electrified public
transport worldwide. For more information, visit BYD at www.facebook.com/bydcompany
and www.byd.com

About BYD

BYD is ranked #1 at the top of Bloomberg’s and Business Week’s 2009 Tech
100 List (http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20100520006751/en/BYD-Tops-Bloomberg-Businessweek%E2%80%99s-12th-Annual-Tech)
and is the leading manufacturer of advanced, environmentally-friendly
battery technologies like the BYD’s Iron
Phosphate battery used in BYD electric
vehicles and electric
buses. BYD’s solar
panels and LED
Lighting systems have CEC, TUV/CE and UL listings, and the
company enjoys rapid growth in consumer electronics space and
electrified transportation sector manufacturing under its BYD brand. BYD
is the fastest-growing Chinese automotive and green energy technology
enterprise. The Company trades on the Hong Kong Exchange (HKE) under the
ticker numbers (HK.0285 – BYD Electronics) and (HK.1211 – BYD Company
Ltd.), as well as on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange under the ticker number
(002594 – BYD Company Ltd.). For more information, visit www.byd.com
, www.facebook.com/bydcompany
or email [email protected]

Note 1:

BYD estimates that emissions from a taxi are equivalent to the sum of
those from 14 private cars, while emissions from a single-deck bus are
equivalent to those from 33 private cars and emissions from a
double-decker bus are equivalent to those from 57 private cars. The
total emissions of the 18,133 taxis, 7,150 single-deck buses and 5,564
double-decker buses in Hong Kong are therefore equivalent to the sum of
those from over 800,000 private cars. Of the total emissions from the
650,000 vehicles on Hong Kong’s roads, about 56% comes from single-deck
buses, double-decker buses and taxis combined. Hence, eliminating all
emissions from these fossil fueled vehicles would represent a
corresponding 56% reduction in the total emissions from all vehicles.

Appendix 1:

Since there is substantial price differential between LPG and
electricity, the operating costs of an LPG-fuelled taxi and an electric
taxi are significantly different. On average, a taxi in Hong Kong runs
500 km a day for 353 days a year (taxis take one day for maintenance
every month). The calculation shows that a normal LPG taxi consumes 17L
of natural gas for every 100km, and that an e6 pure electric taxi
consumes 26kWh for every 100km. With reference to the LPG cost of HKD
5/L and the electricity cost of HKD 1.02/kWh, each electric taxi saves
HKD 318 per day, or approximately HKD110 thousand a year, on operating
costs [See Table 1].

Business Wire Environment News