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LCQ18: Charging facilities for electric vehicles
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     Following is a question by Dr the Hon Priscilla Leung and a written reply by the Acting Secretary for the Environment, Ms Christine Loh, in the Legislative Council today (June 22):

Question:

     Some electric vehicle (EV) owners have relayed to me that EV chargers currently available for public use (public chargers) are far from adequate, and EV owners often have to wait for quite a long time before they can get their EVs charged.  These vehicle owners have also pointed out that the inadequate supply of public chargers has dampened the desire of members of the public to buy EVs, thus hindering the popularisation of EVs.  In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the current number of registered EVs in Hong Kong and the number of newly registered EVs in each of the past five years, with a breakdown by type of vehicle;

(2) whether it knows (i) the respective numbers of standard, medium and quick public chargers currently available in the territory and (ii) among them, the respective numbers of those installed in the car parks under the Government, Hong Kong Housing Authority (HKHA) and Hong Kong Housing Society (HKHS), and (iii) the number of public chargers newly installed in each of the past five years, together with a breakdown by District Council district;

(3) whether the authorities have studied if the existing public chargers, in particular those available in the car parks under the Government, HKHA and HKHS, are adequate for meeting the demand; if they have studied and the outcome is in the affirmative, of the justifications; if the study outcome is in the negative, the authorities' improvement measures to address the concerns of those people intending to buy EVs about the inadequate supply of public chargers; and

(4) given that the authorities amended in June 2011 the planning guidelines for new buildings to recommend 30 per cent of private parking spaces in new buildings to be installed with charging facilities for EVs, and despite that several Members of this Council have all along been making enquiries to the authorities through different channels about the number of public chargers available in private properties, the authorities have failed to provide the relevant information, how the authorities grasp the number of public chargers available in private properties so as to ensure that they have an accurate grasp of the supply and demand situation of public chargers in promoting the use of EVs?

Reply:

President,

     In general, owners of private electric vehicles (EVs) should charge their EVs by using charging facilities at their workplace, home or other suitable places.  The public charging network mainly serves as supplementary charging facilities, enabling EVs to top up their batteries to complete their journeys when necessary.  Therefore, potential buyers should consider charging arrangements before buying EVs.

     As at April 30, 2016, there are over 1 300 public chargers and 4 899 private EVs in Hong Kong, with one public charger for every four EVs on average.  To enhance the charging efficiency of public charging facilities, the Government has been upgrading more public chargers to medium chargers so as to reduce the charging time for EVs.  Moreover, the two power companies and the commercial sector continue to upgrade their existing public standard chargers to medium chargers and install multi-standard quick chargers.  EV suppliers have also been proactive in adding their EV charging facilities for their EV models at public venues.

     To facilitate EV owners to install charging facilities at their parking spaces, the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) has established a dedicated team and a hotline (3757 6222) to provide relevant information and technical support for parties or individuals interested in installing charging facilities.  We have also issued guidelines on the specific arrangements and technical requirements for installing charging facilities.

     In view of the growing popularity of EVs, we continue to collaborate with the property management sector, incorporated owners, owners' committees, the two power companies and charging service providers in organising seminars for stakeholders to share with them the latest development and technology of charger installation and successful experience, with a view to encouraging developers and property management companies to provide charging service in more housing estates.  We will closely monitor the growth in the number of EVs and expand the public charging network as necessary.

     The two power companies have launched a one-stop service since 2015 to give technical support to EV owners who intend to install charging facilities at the parking spaces of residential or commercial buildings.  With the steady growth in the number of EVs, there are private companies in the market that provide one-stop EV charging service, including installation of charging facilities and provision of charging service, to those housing estates or business organisations that require such service.

     As far as planning is concerned, the Government has taken the following measures to facilitate charging arrangements for EVs:

(a) With effect from April 2011, concessions on gross floor area for car parks in new buildings are granted if they are "EV charging-enabling" so as to encourage developers to put in place the necessary EV charging infrastructure (including provision of sufficient power supply, cables and ducts) in the car parks of new buildings to facilitate future installation of chargers by EV users; and

(b) In June 2011, planning guidelines for new buildings were amended to recommend 30 per cent of private car parking spaces to be installed with EV charging facilities.

     My specific responses to the questions raised by Dr the Hon Priscilla Leung are as follows:

(1) According to the vehicle registration records of the Transport Department, there are 5 042 EVs, of which 4 899 are private cars, registered in Hong Kong as at April 30, 2016.

     Figures on newly-registered EVs (by vehicle type) in each of the past five years are set out in Annex 1.

 (2) The Government has been working with the commercial sector to increase EV charging facilities.  There are currently over 1 300 public chargers of various types in Hong Kong covering all 18 districts, including about 900 standard chargers, over 200 medium chargers, 15 CHAdeMO quick chargers and 145 quick chargers applicable to other charging standards.

     The distribution and types of EV public chargers in all 18 districts of Hong Kong are set out in Annex 2.

     Figures on public chargers installed in car parks run by the Government, Hong Kong Housing Authority (HKHA) and Hong Kong Housing Society (HKHS) are set out in Annex 3.

     The Government has compiled statistics on EV chargers installed in public car parks run by the Government since 2013, and has collected information on those installed in other public car parks since 2014.  Figures on EV public chargers newly installed between January 2013 and May 31, 2016 are set out in Annex 4.

(3) Currently, utilisation of public chargers set up by the Government is relatively low, at an average rate of eight times per month per charger.  To enhance the charging efficiency for EVs, we will upgrade 100 public standard chargers to medium chargers in 2016-17.  As compared with standard chargers, medium chargers can reduce the charging time up to 60 per cent.

(4) Information on the locations and details of public chargers has been uploaded to the EPD website (www.epd.gov.hk/epd/sites/default/files/epd/english/environmentinhk/air/prob_solutions/files/EV_Charger_Locations_eng_01.xls).

     Among these public chargers, 743 are installed in car parks of private properties, including the car parks of 213 shopping malls and hotels.

     From April 2011 to December 2015, 80 per cent of private parking spaces in newly approved developments are to be installed with EV charging infrastructure.

     As mentioned above, public charging facilities mainly serve EV owners' need for topping up their EVs' batteries to complete their journeys.  We will closely monitor the growth in the number of EVs and expand and enhance the public charging network as necessary.

Ends/Wednesday, June 22, 2016
Issued at HKT 12:59

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