Smart City Facilitators: Leading the Charge for Electric Vehicles

Despite the introduction of electric vehicles (EVs) about a decade ago, inadequate supporting facilities and complicated charging procedures have been hindering the popularisation of EVs in Hong Kong. According to the Environmental Protection Department, there were about 15,200 EVs on the road in Hong Kong at the end of June this year. However, there were only 3,125 charging stations available, meaning one charger for almost five EVs in the city. As EVs usually take a few hours to charge, their owners often encounter long queues and sometimes getting frustrated by the complexity of the charging stations.

Looking to provide a hassle-free EV charging experience, Cyrus Chow and his friend founded oneCHARGE three years ago with a vision to accelerate the development of EV infrastructure and promote a more sustainable mode of transport in Hong Kong.

Streamlining the Charging Process

Chow shared his observations of difficulties encountered by EV owners in Hong Kong, saying: “A lot of the existing EV chargers require users to input car plate numbers and then select charging speed and time. Many users know how to connect the physical charger but find it difficult to activate the charging system due to its complexity. The whole set up before charging might take up to 10 minutes and it is especially intolerable for EV users during summer months inside the scorching hot car parks.”

Looking to address these stumbling blocks, Chow strives to simplify it by launching a mobile app along with its EV charging system. Explaining how the mobile app works, Chow said: “Users can activate our system simply by scanning the QR code at the physical charger to start charging. They can then make payment via credit card or e-wallets such as Apple Pay, Google Pay and TNG Wallet. The whole process can be completed within 15 seconds.” The mobile app also enables users to check real-time charging status, receive notifications when the vehicle is fully charged, and locate nearby oneCHARGE charging stations.

As an incubatee of Cyberport, oneCHARGE first set up its charging station in the Cyberport car park and later expanded to other parts of the city. There are about 18 oneCHARGE charging stations in Hong Kong, including residential car parks in Sha Tin and Tseung Kwan O.

Integrated Solution to Promote Usage

OneCHARGE not only provides charging hardware for the convenience of vehicle owners, but also offers an integrated solution for monitoring and managing EV usage in commercial settings. Chow is convinced that this is particularly useful for shopping malls to create customer value, saying: “Through our cloud management system and data analytics, shopping mall operators can easily learn about usage patterns such as popular time slots for charging stations and average charging time per vehicle. They can then develop strategies to attract or manage customer traffic, for example, by installing charging stations closer to the elevator or introducing promotional campaigns targeting EV drivers.”

OneCHARGE’s physical charger is also equipped with a camera which can capture information such as vehicle license plate number, brand and model of vehicles. Chow believes that such information is valuable to help car park and shopping mall operators understand the dynamics of their visitors and build closer connections with them. However, Chow pointed out the difficulties in rolling out such function in Hong Kong, saying: “We have disabled the camera function as users are concerned about privacy and fear the information collected would be used to track their whereabouts.”

Slow Transition Towards Electric Vehicles

To promote the use of private electric cars, the government has implemented several measures including waiving the first registration tax for such cars for up to HK$97,500 and introducing a "One-for-One Replacement" Scheme. The annual vehicle licence fees for private electric cars (starting from HK$400 for vehicles not exceeding one tonne unladen weight) are also far lower than those for conventional private cars, which range from HK$3,929 to HK$12,789.[1]

Despite pro-EV policies, the city is lagging behind in private EV ownership, with less than 3% of total registered vehicles are EVs. Apart from inadequacies in ancillary facilities, Chow drew attention to another constraint that hinders the adoption of EVs in Hong Kong: “A key barrier we’re seeing is the limited range of EVs available on the market, which is holding back the growth of the EV market.” Chow believes that introducing a greater variety of electric cars, particularly stylish models at an affordable price, will encourage more vehicle owners to switch from conventional cars to EVs.

Experiences in South Korea

Given the relatively small market in Hong Kong, oneCHARGE is seeking to expand its services to other Asian countries. In late 2018, oneCHARGE participated in the K-Startup Grand Challenge, a start-up accelerator programme organised by the South Korean government, which provides networking opportunities and exposure to investors in South Korea, mainly in the capital city Seoul.