Hong Kong, Beijing, London, New Delhi, Taipei, Boston, Toronto, Seoul – August 4, 2022

China’s electric vehicle (EV) charging points increased 56% YoY in 2021, according to Counterpoint Research’s latest China Electric Vehicle and Charging Points Tracker. Since ensuring economic stability is China’s top priority in 2022, accelerating infrastructure investment is expected to boost the growth of charging points. The number of charging points in China is expected to increase 58% YoY in 2022.

Starting from the second half of 2020, the sales volume of new energy vehicles (NEVs) in China has increased rapidly thanks to government incentives to raise NEV sales to 20% of all car sales by 2025. In fact, the 20% target was achieved earlier than planned. In 2021, China’s NEV sales rose 68% YoY, with the vehicle-to-charging point ratio reaching around 3, which means there was one charging point for every three NEVs. Commenting on the setting up of EV charging points in China, Senior Analyst Ivan Lam said, “Refuelling or recharging is a crucial subject for the NEV industry’s development. Internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles have a well-established refuelling network and take just a few minutes to refuel. Besides, one can carry a small barrel of gasoline along when going on a long drive. But the EV takes longer to charge – one to two hours even when using a supercharger. Given China’s current policy, the charging point market’s size has a high potential to reach nearly 1:1 vehicle-to-charging point ratio.”

Currently, third-party charging point operators are the market mainstream, making up 75% of public charging points. State-owned companies account for about 20% of public charging points and vehicle companies take the rest. Commenting on the current China charging point market, Research Analyst Alicia Gong said, “At the moment, China’s charging point market is still very fragmented. Many players have jumped into this industry with the expectation of future growth. The market growth will be expedited with the state-owned enterprises’ penetration.”

In 2021, Starcharge, TELD and State Grid were the top three operators in China, respectively. The top three players together grabbed a 62% share. Commenting on the current competitive landscape, Lam said, “Heavy investment is involved in the charging point business. It requires land (rented or purchased), station construction, charging solution integration, maintenance, and electricity connection. Although there are some incentives available to support this industry, the upfront investment is unavoidable and the payback period runs into years. The backup funding for the leading players has to be solid and from a long-term perspective. We observed that some players which were market leaders a few years back are no longer among the toppers.”

China wants the NEV industry to achieve the "Two Carbon" goal, with subsidies for almost every related sector. According to Counterpoint Research’s China NEV Tracker, China’s EV charging point market is expected to increase at a CAGR of 42% from 2022 to 2026 due to a massive increase in domestic NEV sales.

Background

Counterpoint Technology Market Research is a global research firm specializing in products in the TMT (technology, media and telecom) industry. It services major technology and financial firms with a mix of monthly reports, customized projects and detailed analyses of the mobile and technology markets. Its key analysts are seasoned experts in the high-tech industry.

Analyst Contacts

Ivan Lam

Alicia Gong

Soumen Mandal

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