China, the world's long-time leader in conventional bicycle production, is now
the dominant producer of electric-powered versions - or e-bikes.
An estimated 120 million domestically produced e-bikes are in use on the
country's roads today, and somewhere between 700,000 and 800,000 e-bikes
operate in Beijing alone. No other nation comes close to this total - an
estimated 200,000 e-bikes are being used across the entire United States
E-bike sales are surging - up 8.2% last year to 23.69 million units - as
traditional pedal-powered bike production in China declines, tumbling 13.2%
last year to 76.06 million bicycles, according to Ma Zhongchao, head of the
China Bicycle Association (CBA). [1]
Exports of Chinese-made pedal-driven bikes fell 18.2% in 2009 to
46.12 million - reflecting in part falling demand due to the global financial
crisis. Foreign sales jumped in January this year by 21.4% from a year earlier,
to 4.08 million bicycles. China's e-bike exports also declined in 2009, down
33% to 370,000 units, CBA figures show. [2]
E-bikes, which combine pedal power with battery-based propulsion, make up the
majority of the market for electric two-wheeled vehicles (E2WVs). More than 466
million E2WVs will be sold worldwide from 2010 to 2016 and 57% will be e-bikes,
according to Dave Hurst, a senior analyst at Colorado-based Pike Research, and
the lead author of a 2010 report on the sector.
More than 95% of the world's e-bikes forecast to be sold over the next six
years will be bought in China, Hurst says.
No single brand dominates the e-bike market in China, according to Hurst, who
singles out Jiangsu Xinri E-Vehicle, Luyuan Electric Vehicle and Changzhou
Hongdu Electric Bicycle Co as some of the largest producers in a fractured
market with "well over 3,000 manufacturers garnering only a few percentage
points of market share". They are chasing revenues that could be as high as
US$7.6 billion this year from the sale of 25.3 million units, says Hurst.
Major well-known bicycle brands outside China, including US-based SRAM and Trek
along with Taiwan's Giant Manufacturing, have recently introduced e-bikes or
e-bike components, while in India, Hero Electric has helped to launch an e-bike
sector, with sales in the country expected to more than double this year from
100,000 in 2009. [3]
Companies such as SRAM, Trek and Giant "are already starting to drive new
innovation and marketing efforts for e-bikes. Outside of traditional bicycle
companies, Sanyo Electric and Honda are also jumping into the market, and it is
expected that Yamaha may follow," says Hurst.
While many e-bikers move up from pedal-powered machines, the rising cost of
fuel for standard motorbikes and scooters also encourages a switch to electric.
Some bikers "may leave gas-powered motorcycles for e-bikes due to cost because
electricity is cheaper than gas," said Hurst.
One innovation for e-bikes is how to recharge batteries. Sanyo Electric in
Japan, for example, recently opened three solar-powered charging stations in
Tokyo for its "eneloop" bikes, which can recharge dozens of e-bikes
simultaneously. The company has also erected a so-called "Solar Parking Lot"
for e-bikes on a trial basis at a government office in Tokushima prefecture.
Sanyo's "eneloop" e-bike, introduced in 2008, is described by the company as a
"regenerative, pedal-assist hybrid electric bicycle" which can travel "40 miles
[64 kilometers] per charge in full Auto pedal assist mode." The product became
available in the United States in late 2009 with a suggested retail price
starting at US$2,299, whereas e-bikes in China sell for an estimated 1,700 yuan
(US$250) to 3,000 yuan.
Such innovations encourage the idea that e-bikes are by their nature
environmentally friendly, but their use of batteries and the problem of battery
disposal raises concerns - particularly in China, where lead batteries are
widely used for e-bikes and up to five such batteries might be needed to power
a single e-bike over its lifetime.
The electric car market has triggered an increase in production of lithium ion
batteries, making them less expensive and more viable for use in e-bikes.
"In China, the e-bike market is highly price sensitive, so any change to
pricing in either direction will likely have a noticeable impact on the
marketplace," says Hurst. "Developments in batteries for the [electric
automobile] market will also trickle down into the e-bike business as the
technology becomes more affordable. Battery makers are constantly working to
improve the power-weight ratio with technology like prismatic cells, which are
lighter and smaller."
The increasing popularity of e-bikes in China, where they are largely
unregulated, and an increasing number of road accidents associated with them,
is attracting the attention of the central and local governments. A recently
proposed law would have made many e-bikes at present in use illegal without a
license.
"However, concern with a backlash from employers who rely on employees getting
to work via e-bikes caused the government to put those rules on hold," says
Hurst. "Additionally, many Chinese cities, including Shanghai in 2007, have
banned gas-powered motorcycles and scooters, which has led to huge sales boosts
[of e-bikes]."
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