Mountain villages embrace NEV shift

JINAN, Aug. 1 (Xinhua) -- During the summer vacation, farms and orchards in Yinjiayu Village in the city of Linyi, east China's Shandong Province, have become popular destinations attracting tourists from far and wide.

Among the many surprises that awaited them, new energy vehicle (NEV) owners were delighted to find three public charging stations installed in the area, easing their "range anxiety."

The village, nestled in the Yimeng Mountains, was once considered an isolated area with limited transportation access. However, in recent years, the Chinese government has been actively encouraging the expansion of NEVs into rural markets, bringing these environmentally friendly vehicles closer to county-level consumers.

"We have implemented a comprehensive action plan for charging facilities in towns and villages, bringing charging stations to rural areas to support eco-friendly transportation for the public," said Ren Yonghui, marketing director of State Grid's power supply company in Yishui County.

The county has preliminarily established a charging service system covering both townships and villages, allowing electric vehicles to travel smoothly in the countryside.

With improved rural transportation infrastructure and an increase in the standard of living of farmers, NEVs have gained popularity in the Yimeng Mountains, making their way into more rural households.

Shuigou Village in Pingyi County has 150 households and a total of 35 NEVs. "Driving an NEV is eco-friendly, cost-effective, and convenient," said Zhang Chao, a villager who recently returned from a road trip.

During off-peak hours, it costs less than 30 yuan (about 4.2 U.S. dollars) to fully charge the car, and less than 10 cents per km, Zhang noted.

As the charging demands increased, so more individual charging stations appeared in Shuigou Village, straining the local power supply. To address this, the local power supply company upgraded its transformer to cope with the growing demand.

In addition to supporting individual charging stations, the city of Linyi is also actively promoting the construction of public charging infrastructure to bolster the expansion of NEVs into rural areas.

Zhucun Village in Linshu County, well-known for its revolutionary history, is a popular tourist destination. In March, the village set up an NEV charging station, which integrates photovoltaic power generation, energy storage, and charging functions.

Since it started operation, the integrated charging station has facilitated the addition of more than 20 NEVs to the village.

"We're rapidly expanding the charging network, with plans to achieve full coverage of public charging stations in all towns by year-end," said Gao Zhenguo, deputy marketing director at State Grid's Linyi power supply company.