ZAP's Jonway Auto Targets China's EV Comprehensive Multi-Billion Dollar Stimulus Program Extended to 2020

SANTA ROSA, Calif., July 31, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- ZAP (ZAAP), an Electric Vehicle (EV) automotive company incorporated in California and headquartered in Santa Rosa, California, and its subsidiary Jonway Auto aligns its companies' strategy and priorities to fully utilize the comprehensive multi-billion dollar EV stimulus program announced by the Chinese government on July 14^th by China's General Office of the State Council. This announcement commits the central government to implement a comprehensive macro program that is inclusive of EV rebates, sales tax and license fees elimination, electric charging infrastructure installation mandates as well as electric power pricing incentives to stimulate EV market adoption through to the year 2020, thus extending another five years from the 2015 programs announced in prior years. http://www.gov.cn/zhengce/content/2014-07/21/content_8936.htm

Chinese central government has laid out the plan, policies and priorities in this recent announcement for an overall EV stimulus program in China that aims at promoting mass market adoption in the urban cities where fuel consumption and pollution problems are the most prevalent. This creates favorable macro-economic drivers, policies that accelerate EV charging infrastructures and tax incentives and fuel pricing that favors EV, including specific programs that require government vehicle purchasing quotas to allocate a minimum of 30% of its new vehicles to be full electric. Besides the already in place "free" new auto license registration for EVs, which in cities like Shanghai has been more than US$20,000 for new vehicle registrations priced under an auction scheme,  there are now other additional stimulus programs  offered to buyers of full electric vehicles, whether the buyers are individuals, corporations or leasing companies, starting September 1, 2014. This includes elimination of automobile sales tax for EVs compared to gasoline or hybrids, which is 8.5%, and also the elimination of consumer tax for the manufacturers which ranges from 6% to 10% depending on EV product types and class. Other policies stated by this announcement are requirements for parking garages for building and public areas to install charging stations, with improvement and upgrades from the State Grid to support fast charge. The announcement of deregulation in installation of charging systems where private enterprises can now install charging stations in urban developments or parking garages, and provide charging facilities in public areas will greatly stimulate deployment of charging systems in the cities. This opens up the industry where previously only the State Grid can install charging stations and charge users for the electric power, now private companies can do so. The central government also announced reduction of subsidies for gasoline fuel and tapering this down to zero. There will also be pricing policies for charging electric power at private charging stations and the re-pricing of electricity usage, favorably catering to EVs, in order to drive market adoption. 

ZAP and Jonway Auto are revamping Jonway Auto's factory facilities to deliver Electric Vehicle products as its mainstream business and taper off the gasoline car business of Jonway Auto in order to focus the business only on EVs.  Already in place are 2 production lines that are producing more than 50 vehicles a day per line as of June 2014, and ramping to 100 per day per line by 3Q2014. The EV SUV and EV minivans from Jonway Auto are well positioned in the EV market and uniquely offers the most cost competitive EV products in SUV and minivan to buyers in China today, given its larger size and range. With the already type approved EV SUV and the soon to be available type approved EV minivan, these EV licensed products could be eligible for up to US$20,000 per vehicle from the central government and local governments' rebates on a per EV basis, depending upon the range between recharges. Today these models are being re-configured for mass production to support optimal eligibility for rebate and performance efficiency. EVs with ranges of over 250Km are eligible for up to US$20,000 in rebate from just the central government, not counting the local government rebates, and EVs with ranges of over 150km in range are eligible for US$10,000 in rebate from the central government, and then would scale up in rebate as the range efficiency improves. ZAP and Jonway's EV minivans in particular will be aiming for getting to a price point that is below the gasoline version in price for its lithium EV product models after the central government's rebate. Therefore, ZAP and Jonway Auto's EV minivan will give city delivery owners savings in not only operational fuel costs but overall cost of ownership either through leasing or purchase.  Where there is local government subsidies in the larger cities like Hangzhou, Shenzhen, Guangdong, Shanghai, Tianjin and Beijing, the total rebate could result in little to no cost to the buyer after receiving both central and local government subsidies. 

The new models of EV SUV and EV minivan to be unveiled in October 2014, will specifically be engineered and configured to target China's stimulus program, and aims to achieve the ZERO cost ownership threshold for the EV minivan, and "less than gasoline" cost threshold for the EV SUVs; thus, fully leveraging the financial stimulus that is in place in China through 2020.

About ZAP and Jonway Auto

ZAP and Jonway Auto designs and manufactures quality, affordable new energy and electric vehicles (EVs).  Jonway Automobile has ISO 9000 manufacturing facilities, engineering, sales and customer services facilities in China, ZAP Jonway has production capacity of up to 50,000 vehicles per year, and has established sales distribution network in China. ZAP, an early pioneer of EVs, brings to both companies a broad range of EV product technologies that is applied to the new product lines. ZAP Jonway is headquartered in Santa Rosa, California and Jonway Auto is located in Zhejiang Province of the People's Republic of China. Additional information about ZAP Jonway is available at http://www.zapworld.com.

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  The words "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "plan," and similar expressions that may tend to suggest a future event or outcome are not guarantees of performance, which cannot be predicted or anticipated.  These forward-looking statements are based largely on expectations and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the control of the Company.  Actual results could differ materially from these forward-looking statements.Contact:

Michael Ringstad 
[email protected]

707-525-8658x104

SOURCE ZAP and Jonway Auto