Abstract
The sustainable development of the new energy vehicle (NEV) industry is receiving increasing attention worldwide. However, as a “catch-up” country in the automobile industry, China has made remarkable achievements in NEV industry development. To explore this phenomenon, this paper develops an “innovation-demand-policy” (IDP) framework to investigate the driving forces of sustainable development of the NEV industry from the perspective of an innovation ecosystem. Based on a comprehensive data collection and processing of interviews, patents, industry reports, and policy documents, the findings showed that technological innovation, market demand, and government policy drive NEV industry development together, and policy can play an effective role of coordination only when it follows an innovation process and market demand selection mechanism. Specifically, technological grafting, potential market demand, and supply-side policy create a minimum viable ecosystem and the embryonic form of the NEV industry. Technological breakthroughs, public demand, and demand-side policy enhance the NEV industry’s ability to grow via a platform ecosystem. Additionally, total innovation, private demand, and environmental-side policy upgrade the NEV industry through expanding and reconfiguring the innovation ecosystem. This study also provides suggestions for policymakers and industrialists to promote sustainable development of the NEV industry in the future.
Highlights
The motor vehicle population in China increased from 159 million in 2007 to 310 million in 2017, almost doubling in the last decade [1]
new energy vehicle (NEV) are defined as vehicles using unconventional fuel power sources or new power devices, and we focus on pure electric vehicles (PEVs), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), and fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) in this paper
China established the foundation of the traditional fuel vehicle industry through “trading market access for technology”, but abandoned this development logic of overemphasizing technologies in the NEV industry
Summary
The motor vehicle population in China increased from 159 million in 2007 to 310 million in 2017, almost doubling in the last decade [1]. Traditional fuel vehicle exhaust has become a severe source of air pollution in China, especially in Beijing, Shanghai, other large cities, and more populated areas. This exhaust is responsible for 20%~40% of PM2.5 [2]. The rapid expansion of motor vehicle ownership has caused the dependence on oil in China to increase from 47% in 2007 to 67% in 2017 [3]. China is expected to become the world’s largest oil-consuming country in the near future. China is in an awkward position because its automobile industry is large rather than powerful and has not changed because of the lack of core technologies and independent famous brands
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