Moving forward? China rethinking plug-in vehicle policy

Beijing appears to be rethinking its singular focus on electric vehicles as a way to reduce fuel consumption and seems ready to revise its alternative-energy vehicle estimates as it becomes increasingly evident that the city's electric vehicle targets were completely unrealistic.

Beijing – and in some ways, the whole of China – had set out to leapfrog conventional engine technology by developing and manufacturing huge amounts of electric vehicles. In particular, the city had hoped its push to develop plug-ins would give it an advantage over the West in electric vehicle technology. But hopes and dreams don't always jive with reality.

Plug-in vehicle sales in China have been poor and, even though no formal decision has been taken to abandon the nation's grand electric vehicle scheme, some higher-ups in Beijing are reportedly rethinking the policy. For example, The Globe and Mail reports:

Meanwhile, Peter Huang, powertrain forecast manager at IHS Automotive in Shanghai, expects Beijing to broader its approach and look into "hybrids and all vehicles that can reduce fuel consumption."

Forbes presents a compelling story on this notion that China and its sole focus on electric vehicles don't mix. Here's a particularly striking excerpt:

But was he really sitting in the vehicle of future? Forbes says BYD has sold a grand total of 53 (!) e6s since March of 2010, with nearly all of those going to local taxi companies, which leads us to this question: How can a vehicle that doesn't sell represent the future?