China Publishes Revised Regulations for Government Office Energy Conservation and Waste Reduction

Beijing, May 19 -- The Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the State Council have jointly issued a revised version of "Regulations on the Implementing and Enforcement of Energy Conservation and Counter-Waste Work in Government Offices" and submitted a circular requiring all regions and departments to diligently implement the new regulations.

According to Article 29 of the revised regulations, government-provided vehicles will be centrally purchased through government procurement, with a priority given to domestically made cars and new energy cars. Public service cars must undergo regular replacement within the prescribed period, with cars that have passed the age limit allowed to continue in use. The insurance, maintenance, fueling, and repair of public service cars are also subject to central procurement, which is expected to reduce running costs.

A notable mention is the recent National Symposium on Promotion of New Energy Cars for Government Vehicles held by the State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC) in Hebei Xuanwu District from September 26 to 27, 2023. The symposium stressed that all local government departments should fully implement the new energy car promotion policies, cooperate with relevant industries' authorities, and set up supporting measures. They also emphasized the importance of tailoring strategies to regional characteristics, classification, coordination between different power types, and differentiation within urban-rural areas.

Additionally, the Financial Department will publish a guideline at the end of 2024 titled "Strengthening Regulation Implementation and Further Promoting Administrative Asset Management of State-Owned Assets" with key aspects including strict management of government-provided vehicle inventory for administrative units during compilation periods to be properly allocated from within and encouraged with gradual increase of new energy cars usage. Furthermore, Financial Office announced further notice requesting departments mainly in charge for purchasing under budget directly set off a clear annual target for Government Purchasing Ratio for New Energy Cars (NEW ENERGY CAR BUYING PROPORTION).

The main points can be summarized as follows:

• Government offices must implement the requirements outlined in the new regulations, with an emphasis on energy conservation and waste reduction measures.
• The Ministry of Finance has announced a plan to require all administrative units under its jurisdiction to purchase a certain percentage of new energy cars for public service vehicle replacement within 2024.
• To achieve this goal, the administration suggests that purchasing ratio should be greater than or equal to 30%.
• In contrast to other government-provided vehicles, such as special communication equipment and other long-distance commuting vehicles mainly in urban areas used continuously, new energy cars are required to purchase 100% of.