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The Environmental Protection Department (EPD) today (October 12) announced the approval of 13 applications for funding support on the trial of green and innovative transport technologies under the Pilot Green Transport Fund.
The approved applications cover the trial of 16 electric buses and nine electric goods vehicles, amounting to a total subsidy of almost $50 million. The applications came from:
Billion More Limited
Chi Shing Transportation Company
Federal Express (Hong Kong) Limited
Good Funds Services Limited
International Trademart Company Limited
Kwoon Chung Motors Company Limited
Tai Fung Coach Company Limited
The Chinese University of Hong Kong
TNT Express Worldwide (Hong Kong) Limited
Trade Travel (Hong Kong) Limited
Trans-Island Limousine Service Limited
The electric goods vehicles for trial include eight van-type electric light goods vehicles and one electric medium goods vehicle, with gross weights ranging from 1.8 tonnes to 10 tonnes. They will be used for courier services and goods and materials transportation.
The electric buses will be used to provide non-franchised bus services including hotel and resident shuttles and employee and on-campus transportation. Their routes cover extensive areas and different operating and road conditions, including services covering long distances, busy urban areas and steep roads, which can test the performance of electric buses under different operational environments.
The Steering Committee of the Fund, after deliberation at its meeting in September, gave support to this first batch of applications under the Fund.
The successful applicants shall each sign an agreement with the Government and start preparing the trials accordingly. The trials are expected to start next year. The EPD will upload information on these approved applications to its website after the agreements are signed.
The Government set up the $300 million Fund to encourage the public transport sector to test out green and low-carbon transport technologies. The Fund has been open since March 30 this year for application by public transport operators including ferry, taxi and public light bus service operators; charitable and non-profit-making organisations providing services to their clients; franchised bus and non-franchised public bus service operators; and goods vehicle owners. The technologies for trial can be new vehicle types, equipment or machinery related to transport activities, or new retrofit systems resulting in substantially better emission performance compared with existing models. A transport operator may apply to the Fund to try out different green products subject to a maximum subsidy of $9 million for each application and $12 million in total.
Motor vehicles are the main source of our roadside air pollution and they also contribute about 18 per cent of local greenhouse gas emissions. Promoting green transport will not only improve air quality but will also reduce carbon emissions, which helps avert global climate change. Furthermore, it will open up business opportunities for green transport technologies.
For more information on the Fund, please visit the EPD website (www.epd.gov.hk) or call the enquiry hotline on 2824 0022.
Ends/Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Issued at HKT 11:19
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