New measures to improve electricity supply

Tesla charging piles are seen at a charging station in Pudong New Area, Shanghai, in December 2018. [Photo/IC]

Shanghai Electric Power Company, under China's State Grid, announced on March 12 that it will implement 10 new measures to improve service quality and "charge" the development of electric cars.

The new measures include shortening the period of power supply authorization of startups to a maximum of 15 days and integrating necessary procedures to one online platform, said Ruan Qiantu, general manager of Shanghai Electric Power Company.

The company will also adopt a new mode to finish its routine maintenance, without affecting the stability of power supply in both industrial parks and residential areas.

In addition, the company will increase its efforts on the construction of a green transportation system empowered by charging stations. 

In July 2018, U.S. electric carmaker Tesla signed an agreement with the Shanghai municipal government to open a new gigafactory in Lingang Area, Pudong, Shanghai. It is expected to have an annual producing capacity of 500,000 electric cars. The project boasts an investment of over 50 billion yuan ($7 billion), which is the largest foreign-invested manufacturing project in Shanghai's history and Tesla's first outside the United States.

As of the end of 2018, Shanghai has built 518 charging stations with a total of 7,806 charging piles. 

Shanghai Electric Power Company is planning to deploy more charging stations for electric buses and open a "one-stop" new energy vehicles service model that bundles services such as car purchase, pick up, and charging pile installation to stimulate the sales of new energy vehicles.