China unveiled a new regulation on Thursday requiring most automakers to sell a minimum number of new energy vehicles annually from 2019, as part of the country's broader effort to curb carbon emissions by reducing the use of fossil-fuel powered vehicles.

The new policy from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology requires that sales of NEVs should reach a threshold equivalent to 10 percent of their total in 2019 and 12 percent in 2020.

The regulation applies to car makers that produce or import more than 30,000 conventional vehicles annually, which is lower than the 50,000 threshold mentioned in a policy draft and includes more vehicle companies in the evaluation system.