Shenzhen plans to have 35,000 electric cars on its road within 3 years, the city's vice-mayor Tang Jie said on Friday.

Tang, at the C40 Hong Kong Workshop on Friday, said that Shenzhen is building itself into a low carbon city after 30 years of rapid growth.

Shenzhen is now entering into a "mature" development period, in which it will seek stable output with less investment.

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The city is trying to become more low-carbon through expanding public transportation, constructing environment-friendly buildings, lowering investments in energy-consuming sectors, and encouraging residents to live and consume in a low-carbon way, Tang said.

Shenzhen aims to build an electric car base at the national level during the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015) period, Tang said earlier this month.

It is now building recharging stations across the city, laying fundamental infrastructure for electric vehicles, Tang said at the conference.

China is likely to lead in the EV battery sector by 2020, due to the country's large demand, C.C. Chen, president of the World EV Association & EV Association of Asia Pacific, said at the C40 workshop in Hong Kong.

Shenzhen is now holding the 25th World Battery, Hybrid and Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle Symposium and Exposition.