More and more Chinese electric vehicle brands are entering the Singapore market as the federal government pushes for electric vehicle adoption with expanded incentives and charging stations.
Last week, Geely-owned luxury electric brand Zeekr debuted within the city-state with the Zeekr X, a premium SUV with a starting price of 199,999 Singapore dollars ($150,604).
Just every week earlier, Xpeng Motors announced its entry into the Singapore market with a pop-up showroom where visitors had the chance to check drive the Xpeng G6 electric SUV. Prices start at SG$209,999 for the usual model and SG$224,999 for the longer-range version.
“As Singapore continues its transition to electric vehicles, we believe there is a need for electric vehicles that go beyond the function of simple transportation and offer a premium driving experience with amenities that enhance city living,” said Mars Chen, vice chairman of Zeekr, following the brand’s launch in Singapore last week.
“We are optimistic that our product launch will expand our presence in Southeast Asia and beyond,” said Chen.
Chinese electric vehicles are nothing recent in Singapore, because the country is the world's largest seller of electrical vehicles. BYDwhich dethroned Tesla, has been positioned within the city-state since 2014.
We would really like to indicate that the charging infrastructure for electric vehicles within the city-state should be expanded rapidly within the medium term with a purpose to support the further spread of electrical vehicles.
BMI, a Fitch Solutions company
BYD's fleet of 30 electric taxis first hit Singapore's streets in December 2014 and the corporate subsequently launched a variety of electrical vehicles, from trucks and buses to passenger cars corresponding to the e6 and Seal.
Other Chinese automakers corresponding to GAC Aion and Chery have also introduced electric models in Singapore.
“I think they're trying to expand globally and Singapore is just one of the countries they're looking to expand into. Singapore is also very developed – the urban landscape makes it perfect for electric vehicles,” Maybank Securities analyst Jarick Seet told CNBC.
“With the government promoting electric vehicles, it is ideal for electric vehicle manufacturers to expand into Singapore despite the small size of the market,” said Seet.
Singapore plans to phase out diesel-powered cars and taxis by 2025 and combustion engine vehicles by 2030. This is an element of the federal government’s efforts to All vehicles will probably be powered by clean energy by 2040.
In the primary half of this yr About every third recent automotive sold in Singapore was an electrical vehicle – almost double the figure of around 18% in 2023, in keeping with the Ministry of Transport.
The use of electrical vehicles has increased significantly, with incentives and an emissions scheme helping to scale back the acquisition cost of an electrical vehicle by as much as 40,000 Singapore dollars in 2024. Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat said in July.
Availability of charging infrastructure has long been a challenge, but Chee said the installation was “on track” to support a bigger number of electrical vehicles, with a Target of 60,000 charging points by 2030To date, over 7,100 electric vehicle charging stations have been installed across the country.
Singapore's advance
To maintain the momentum of electrical vehicle adoption, Singapore in September prolonged the early adoption incentive program for electric vehicles by two years to 2025.
Under this system, newly registered all-electric cars and taxis will receive a forty five% discount on the extra registration fee – a tax levied when registering a vehicle – as much as a maximum of 15,000 Singapore dollars.
In addition, individuals who register a automotive or taxi with lower emissions are eligible for an emissions rebate, which is used to offset the automotive or taxi's ARF.
BMI, a Fitch Solutions company, said the expanded electric vehicle subsidies and native assembly of Hyundai Ioniq electric vehicles will boost the passenger electric vehicle segment in Singapore during 2024.
“We find that electric vehicle charging infrastructure in the city-state needs to be expanded rapidly in the medium term to support the continued adoption of electric vehicles,” BMI analysts said in a report published in June.
“However, we note that the well-developed public transport and micromobility solutions, together with the high cost of vehicle ownership in Singapore, will help limit the potential size of the market,” the analysts added.
BMI forecasts that sales of electrical vehicles for passenger transport in Singapore will increase by 73.7% year-on-year in 2024, with plug-in hybrid electric vehicle sales increasing by 53.4% and battery electric vehicle sales increasing by 74.7%.
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