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Peugeot Joint Venture in China to Develop Electric Vehicles

01/02/1997

The Associated Press reports that, according to a Chinese newspaper, French carmaker PSA Peugeot Citroen has plans to develop electric cars and vans in cooperation with Chinese automakers. Peugeot's joint venture in China is with Dong Feng Motors in Shiyan, Hubei province. The paper quoted a Peugeot official as saying the electric minibus would probably be the most promising electric vehicle for China, and that other research will center around developing electric vans, taxis, and small cars.

The Chinese government has indicated that it wants to make the auto industry a cornerstone of its economy, but must also fight some of the world's worst air pollution. One of China's national plans calls for electric vehicle production to reach 3,000 to 5,000 electric vehicles a year by the end of the century.

Traffic has become a major problem in China's major cities recently, and most of the vehicles on the road have no emission controls and run on leaded gasoline, making them an growing source of heavy air pollution.

Shanghai, China's largest city, initiated an auto emissions reduction program early this year. Since then, about 120,000 of the city's 490,000 motor vehicles have been equipped with emission control devices. Currently about half of Shanghai's vehicles produce emissions that exceed China's national standards, said the newspaper.

Paul Dever -- The Auto Channel