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 Beijing issued a first 3-day pollution "red alert" on Monday, and
set out measures to combat the hazardous smog, including limiting
the use of conventional petrol-powered and hybrid cars to alternate
days.
But all-electric vehicles are free to drive in the capital at any
time. And that's prompted a rush of inquiries from would-be buyers,
dealers and automakers say.
"I'm considering (an electric car) as the new policy means electric
cars aren't limited from driving on heavy pollution days while other
types are," said Wang Chao, 26, sizing up electric vehicles at a BYD
Co Ltd dealership on Wednesday.
Wang, who runs a Beijing food wholesale business, said the driving
restrictions were yet another reason to think electric, noting the
attraction also of government subsidies that would save him around
100,000 yuan ($15,560) on a new electric model.
 Those subsidies and other government measures have helped
pure-electric car sales soar nearly five-fold to 113,810 nationwide
in the first 10 months of the year, putting China on track to
overtake the United States as the largest market for electric cars
this year.
Automakers including Tesla Motors and Beijing Automotive Group's
[BEJINS.UL] electric car subsidiary say they have seen an uptick in
potential buyers asking about pure electric cars in Beijing because
of the pollution - though many don't dare leave home to do so.
"Recently, the smog is so serious that people aren't willing to go
outside, so they call us to ask," said Li Hui, owner of several BYD
dealerships, which focus on environmentally friendly cars. He said
inquiries about the firm's e6 pure electric model were up by 8-9
percent.
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BYD, backed by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, is also playing
off the smog in its advertising. Posters on social media for the e6
carry a promotion offering free pollution masks for anyone visiting
one of Li's dealerships.
"Evil pollution invades, and you don't have a monkey king?" reads
another advertisement on BYD's official microblog, showing a man in
a cloud of pollution calling for help from China's fabled Monkey
King hero. "Activate the green cleaning (system), make PM2.5
vanish in a puff of smoke," the ad continues, referring to
particulate matter that forms the smog. It goes on to say the car's
purifying system can "say goodbye to big city pollution".
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Yang Lei, marketing manager at Beijing Electric Vehicle Co, whose
backers include BAIC Motor and the city government, said staff
worked with marketing agencies on Sunday, when Beijing was under an
'orange alert', on how to promote sales of its electric cars tied to
the pollution.
Drivers opting to leave their petrol-powered cars at home were
offered free chauffeur-driven rides in the company's electric cars
on Monday through Wednesday, Yang said.
Automakers said it was too early to say if the increase in inquiries
would translate into actual sales.
Dong Yang, head of China's automakers association, said on Thursday
that sales of electric vehicles cannot maintain their current strong
growth, and he predicted that pace of growth will slow next year.
Even if drivers switch to electric vehicles, it may not alleviate
the pollution threat - assuming the cars are recharged using
electricity generated by coal-burning power plants.
A recent study by Carnegie Mellon University found that a shift to
electric cars in China might cause more air pollution because of the
nation's emissions-intensive electricity grid.
Coal is responsible for around 75 percent of power generation in
China, though the government has said it would cut power sector
emissions by 60 percent by 2020.
(Reporting by Jake Spring, with additional reporting by Beijing
newsroom and Winni Zhou; Editing by Ian Geoghegan)
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