Chinese cities power electric vehicles with 100% renewable energy

China, August 21 – The southern Chinese metropolis of Shenzhen has launched an incentive program to encourage owners of new energy vehicles (NEVs) to recharge their vehicles using electricity generated from renewable sources.

As part of the “Eco-friendly Cars, Green Electricity” initiative, NEV owners who recharge their vehicles at any of the city’s 11 green or eco-friendly charging stations can receive an exclusive personal green certificate issued by the National Energy Administration of China (NEA) for every 1,000 kWh of accumulated charging.

Green electricity is produced from renewable energy sources, such as wind, solar, and biomass.

China introduced the green certificate system as a pilot program in 2017. In December 2023, the NEA issued the first batch of green certificates. According to the latest data, between January and June 2025, the NEA issued over 1.37 billion green certificates, while a total of 348 million green certificates were processed nationwide.

In March of this year, the National Development and Reform Commission of China (NDRC), the NEA, and three other departments issued a series of guidelines to promote the high-quality development of the green electricity certificate market.

These guidelines emphasize the importance of “promoting eco-friendly charging stations and supporting new electric vehicles in adopting green electricity.” The “Eco-friendly Cars, Green Electricity” initiative was launched in response to these guidelines.

Shenzhen is one of the pioneering cities in the country leading the way in supplying its fleet of electric vehicles with green electricity, and more cities across China are joining this effort.

At a NEV charging station in the city of Jingjiang, located in the eastern province of Jiangsu, the electronic display at the charging points shows a message stating: “The electricity being charged is 100% green,” aiming to raise public awareness.

Using green electricity on highways not only provides environmental benefits but also promotes the consumption of new energies among local consumers. According to an executive from State Grid Jiangsu Electric Power Company, over 200 charging stations in the service areas of Jiangsu highways have achieved a 100% utilization rate for green electricity.

Additionally, Beijing announced in May of last year that the city would “vigorously promote the practice of recharging NEVs with electricity from new energy sources” and would take innovative steps to explore transaction mechanisms that encourage NEVs to consume green electricity. (Text and Photo: Cubadebate)