The city of Zhengzhou in central China, which was recently hit by heavy rains and floods, has introduced a policy to encourage the purchase of new energy vehicles (NEVs).

Owners of locally licensed vehicles in Zhengzhou that were damaged and scrapped during the floods can receive a base subsidy of RMB 5,000 ($775) if they purchase a new NEV.

In addition, if their scrapped vehicles are 0-3 years old, they can get an additional subsidy of RMB 10,000 when they purchase a NEV.

If the vehicle is 3-6 years old, the subsidy is RMB 8,000, and RMB 5,000 for vehicles over 6 years old.

Zhengzhou is one of the largest cities in China in terms of car ownership.

By the end of 2020, the city ranked sixth in China with 4.039 million vehicles, just 300,000 less than Shanghai, which ranked 5th.

As of July 6, 2021, Zhengzhou has more than 4.9 million motor vehicles.

Recent heavy rains and flooding have damaged many vehicles. According to data from the Henan provincial government, as of July 28, the Henan insurance industry had received 226,400 auto insurance reports with an estimated loss of RMB 6.41 billion.

As of July 6 this year, the number of new energy vehicles in Zhengzhou was 121,100, accounting for only 2.47 percent of its car ownership.

It is worth noting that most of these new energy vehicles are ride-hailing vehicles or cabs.