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Hong Kong mall operators including Link Reit, Swire race to install EV chargers to lure wealthy locals, fill tourism gap
- ‘It is our goal to have 1,000 EV charging spots by mid this year,’ Link Reit spokesman says
- The earlier shopping centres adapt, the more advantageous it will be for them: Hong Kong Information Technology Federation executive
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Shopping centre operators in Hong Kong such as Link Reit, K11 Group, Swire Properties, Henderson Land and Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP) are battling it out for electric-vehicle (EV) owners in a bid to revive business amid a lacklustre increase in inbound tourism and economic headwinds in mainland China and overseas.
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EVs have, in fact, grown in popularity; as of the end of April, the total number of such cars in Hong Kong stood at 55,654, or 6 per cent of total vehicles, according to the Environmental Protection Department.
Shopping centres with chargers might attract EV drivers, who tend to be wealthier, to shop and dine out while their cars are getting charged, said Francis Fong, honorary president of the Hong Kong Information Technology Federation (HKITF).
“The earlier shopping centres [install chargers], the more advantageous it will be for them,” said Fong, a Tesla driver. “You do it and people remember. The coming wave will be the competition for this market. When there is momentum [for EVs], the malls have to do it fast.”
As of the end of March, Hong Kong had only 5,775 EV chargers – about one for every 10 EVs – available for public use.
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