By Polly Yam
HONG KONG (Reuters) - China's Standardization Administration said on Wednesday it has suspended some requirements that could have restricted the use and production of electric bicycles in the country.
Increased production of e-bikes has been a driver of demand for battery metal lead in China, the world's top consumer and producer of the metal, and worries over e-bike production had spurred merchants to sell refined lead stocks to the spot market, traders said.
Earlier this month, the body said e-bikes that weighed over 40 kg or could go faster than 20 km per hour were classified as electric motorbikes, stirring widespread fears that more than 2,000 e-bike factories would close and millions of e-bike users would need to get licenses and insurance for the motorbikes.
"This is good news," said an official at the China Bicycles Association. He added the industry body had lobbied the Standardization Administration to relax the standards for e-bikes following the release of the previous document.
The association was drafting standards of e-bikes and would submit the proposed standards to the government, he said, without providing a timeframe for the submission and details of the proposed standards.
Many e-bikes in China have designed capacity of 30 kph. The bikes usually carry 4 lead batteries, which weigh 16-28 kg.
The state body made the announcement on the website on Wednesday. (www.sac.gov.cn) To see the circular, click: (http://www.sac.gov.cn/templet/default/ShowArticle.jsp?id=5402)
Chinese refined lead prices have risen 51 percent this year to 15,900 yuan per tonne on Tuesday, behind a 130-percent rise in LME lead, which stood at $2,335 per tonne on the same day.
(Editing by Michael Urquhart)
