Environment and Ecology Bureau: Will promote Hong Kong's green and low-carbon development through various aspects such as hydrogen energy development, low-carbon scientific research, and clean production.

Opinion Network News: On April 1, during a meeting of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong, Member Hon. Ho Kai-keong asked the Government questions regarding issues related to Hong Kong’s green and low-carbon development. Secretary for Environment and Ecology, Tse Hoi-wan, responded.

At the meeting, Member Hon. Ho Kai-keong focused on three areas: first, the share of the green and low-carbon industries in Hong Kong’s total economic output and development measures; second, steps to improve the government’s green procurement system, including updates to the approval standards for imported electric vehicles; and third, the impact of the termination of the tax concession arrangement for the first registration of electric private cars, as well as the status of policy reviews.

Secretary Tse Hoi-wan responded that Hong Kong does not have statistics comparable to similar green and low-carbon industries in the Mainland. The local related environmental protection industries’ annual value added from 2021 to 2024 exceeded 10 billion, accounting for about 0.4% of the local gross domestic product. The Government will promote industrial development from multiple aspects, including hydrogen energy development, low-carbon research, clean production, green transportation, and the circular economy. These include stopping the registration of new fuel private cars before 2035 and installing 10,000 high-speed charging piles by the end of 2035, among other measures.

On procurement, the Government has required that newly purchased or replacement private cars (except for special needs) all use electric vehicles. The Government will review and study the guidelines to include electric light commercial passenger and freight vehicles in the mandatory procurement standards, and the Transport Department will also regularly update the approval standards for electric vehicle construction.

Regarding the termination of the tax concession arrangement, the authorities said that the private market has already led the green transition of private cars. It is expected that by 2030, the share of electric private cars will exceed 45%, and by 2035 it will be close to 500,000 units. The trend toward widespread adoption is irreversible.

Disclaimer: The contents and data of this article are compiled by Opinion Network based on publicly available information and do not constitute investment advice. Please verify before use.

(Editor: Guo Jiandong ）

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