STORY: China's Anhui actively building itself into an NEV-friendly province
DATELINE: July 17, 2023
LENGTH: 00:02:02
LOCATION: HEFEI, China
CATEGORY: TECHNOLOGY/SOCIETY

SHOTLIST:
1. various of landscapes in Hefei city
2. various of charging infrastructure and NEVs in rural areas
3. SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): YANG JUN, Resident of Maying Village of Changfeng County, Anhui Province
4. SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): DING SHENGJUN, Marketing staff of Anhui Hefei Power Supply Company of the State Grid
5. various of workers planting NEVs charging infrastructure
6. SOUNDBITE 3 (Chinese): YANG SHUQUAN, Resident of Wushibu Community of Changfeng County, Anhui Province
7. various of charging piles using
8. SOUNDBITE 4 (Chinese): WU WEI, Marketing director of Anhui Hefei Power Supply Company of the State Grid

STORYLINE:

East China's Anhui Province is actively building itself into an NEV-friendly province, as China's new energy vehicle (NEV) industry has experienced rapid development in recent years.

To address the imbalanced development in the NEV market between urban and rural areas, Anhui Province has been taking concrete action to increase the number of charging stations in rural areas.

SOUNDBITE 1 (Chinese): YANG JUN, Resident of Maying Village of Changfeng County, Anhui Province
"I used to drive a fuel car, but I purchased a new energy vehicle not long ago. Maying Village of Changfeng County, Anhui Province, develops very fast, and there is a public charging station in the village, which is quite convenient."

SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): DING SHENGJUN, Marketing staff of Anhui Hefei Power Supply Company of the State Grid
"A public charging station was built in the village in the first half of 2022 by the local power supply company to meet the charging demand of tourists and local residents. More than 700 charging piles have been established in rural areas such as public transport hubs, tourism spots and large communities in accordance with requirements. It is also helping push the sales and use of new energy vehicles in rural areas."

Since the establishment of a public charging station in Wushan Township in June, Yang Shuquan, a local rural resident, only needs to drive 4 kilometers to charge his electric car.

SOUNDBITE 3 (Chinese): YANG SHUQUAN, Resident of Wushibu Community of Changfeng County, Anhui Province
"I bought a new energy vehicle two years ago. I used to drive to Hefei City for charging every three days. Now I can charge my car in Wushan Township, which is only 2 kilometers away from my home. Many of my relatives have bought new energy vehicles this year thanks to the establishment of public charging stations in the area."

In 2022 alone, Hefei, the provincial capital, invested 340 million yuan (about 47.5 million U.S. dollars) in upgrading its rural power grid, including the expansion of transformer capacity and changing power lines, to support the building and operation of more charging facilities.

SOUNDBITE 4 (Chinese): WU WEI, Marketing director of Anhui Hefei Power Supply Company of the State Grid
"We are actively advancing the construction of charging infrastructure in rural areas, to ensure the smooth running of new energy vehicles, so that new energy vehicle owners do not have to worry about battery charging when driving to cities or rural areas and on their way home. With a relatively forward-looking vision, the Hefei power supply company of the State Grid has built public charging stations at 50 township power supply centers to cover rural regions, offering both fast and slow charging piles. The number of private charging pile applications in rural Hefei is expected to rise by over 50 percent this year, compared with figures in previous years."

Anhui plans to provide charging facilities to cover 75 percent of all townships in the province by 2024, achieving full coverage by 2025.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Hefei, China.
(XHTV)