TIANJIN, May 4 -- Tianjin, one of the four municipalities in China, recently kicked off construction on its first charging station for electric vehicles in Huaming Town, Dongli District, sources reported.

The city's first charging station, which will have an area of 2,000 square meters and will have a total capacity of 1,000 kilovolt-amperes, will be able to charge 11 vehicles simultaneously. The station will be put into operation in August.

Tianjin will build another four charging stations for electric vehicles in 2010.

In Huaming Town, there are 20 electric tour buses and 93 small electric taxis.

Purchases of electric taxis, which cost RMB 29,000 on average, will be subsidized by the local government. Buyers can collect a subsidy of RMB 6,500 over a period of three years.

At present, there are more than 100 automobile part producers in Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area. Their combined output value will likely exceed RMB 100 billion by the end of this year.