Nissan bets big with £1B investment in UK EV manufacturing

The project has been launched with an initial GBP 1 billion investment by Nissan and its partners Envision AESC, a global battery technology company, and Sunderland City Council, a press release reads. "This project comes as part of Nissan's pioneering efforts to achieve carbon neutrality throughout the entire lifecycle of our products. Our comprehensive approach includes not only the development and production of EVs, but also the use of on-board batteries as energy storage and their reuse for secondary purposes," says Nissan President and Chief Executive Officer, Makoto Uchida. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson adds: "Nissan's announcement to build its new-generation all-electric vehicle in Sunderland, alongside a new gigafactory from Envision-AESC, is a major vote of confidence in the UK and our highly-skilled workers in the North East. The company has 35 years of manufacturing history in Sunderland, and these new projects represent 6,200 jobs at Nissan and its UK suppliers, the press release reads. These jobs includes more than 900 new Nissan jobs and 750 new Envision AESC jobs at its new battery plant. Envision AESC, the battery arm of Envision Group, will deploy integrated AIoT smart technology to monitor and optimise energy consumption, manufacturing and maintenance at its new gigafactory, which according to the press statement will allow it to rapidly increase production and provide batteries to power up to 100,000 Nissan electric vehicles a year. As part of the GBP 1 billion announcement, Nissan will invest up to GBP 423 million to produce a new-generation all-electric vehicle in the UK. Building on the success of the Nissan LEAF, it promises next-generation vehicle styling, efficiency and battery technology, making the switch to electric driving even more accessible. Designed for global markets, UK production will be exported to the European markets traditionally served by Nissan's Sunderland plant. The new crossover will be built on the Alliance CMF-EV platform, with a forecasted production capacity of up to 100,000 units to be installed. Production in Sunderland will create 909 new jobs at the plant, and more than 4,500 in the UK supply chain, while safeguarding a further 75 R&D jobs. Envision AESC already owns and operates a battery plant in Sunderland, established in 2012 for the localisation of Nissan LEAF battery production. Supporting this new model allocation, Envision AESC will invest GPB 450 million to build a UK gigafactory on the International Advanced Manufacturing Park (IAMP), adjacent to the Nissan plant, powered by renewable energy and pioneering next-generation battery technology. The formal planning process is about to begin for the new gigafactory, which represents an initial 9GWh plant, with potential future-phase investment of GBP 1.8b billion by Envision AESC, which would according to the press release generate up to 25GWh and creating 4,500 new jobs in the region by 2030, with potential on site for up to 35GWh. The new gigafactory will create 750 jobs and safeguard the jobs of 300 current employees. "Envision Group's mission is to be the net zero technology partner of choice for global enterprises, governments, and cities. We are therefore delighted to be a part of EV36Zero with Nissan and Sunderland City Council. As part of this, Envision AESC will invest £450m in a new, cutting-edge, low-carbon gigafactory in Sunderland creating 700 new jobs," says Lei Zhang, founder and Chief Executive Officer of Envision Group. "Growth in demand could bring future investment of up to £1.8bn, additional capacity of 25GWh and 4,500 jobs by 2030. This will put the North East at the heart of a new EV hub in the UK, collaborating on R&D around the whole battery lifecycle, from storage, to second life use, V2G smart charging and closed loop recycling," Zhang concluded.