Nissan Sunderland Plant Advances Electric Vehicle Production Amid Industry Shifts
The Nissan Sunderland plant, known as the UK's biggest car factory, has launched the third-generation Leaf after a £450 million upgrade that included a battery marriage station. The production line stretches about a kilometre long, with an output rate of 60 jobs per hour per station and a capacity of up to 600,000 cars annually. In 2024, the plant produced 282,000 cars, marking a 14% decrease from 2023.
Adjacent to the Sunderland plant, AESC operates a gigafactory manufacturing batteries. Initially planned to have a capacity of 38 GWh per year, the finished capacity stands at 15.8 GWh yearly, sufficient to power approximately 300,000 vehicles equipped with 50 kWh batteries. The Nissan Leaf remains the only electric vehicle produced in large volumes in Britain today.
UK state aid disclosures reveal that Nissan received £61 million in 2016 for a new all-electric vehicle project and £101 million in direct grants for the Sunderland plant in 2022. Meanwhile, regulatory developments have seen the EU relax its 2035 ban on petrol and diesel vehicles, allowing 10% of sales to be internal combustion engine cars; similarly, the UK has weakened its zero-emission vehicle mandate, and Canada has paused its EV mandate.
Massimiliano Messina, Nissan Europe chief, indicated there is no fixed date for full electrification in Europe, suggesting a target around 2050 rather than a precise year. Nissan is also exploring opportunities such as building cars for Dongfeng, though nothing concrete has materialized. The company's current priority remains expanding production of the Leaf and other electric models.
The substantial investment made at Sunderland aims to future-proof the plant, enabling the production of more hybrid vehicles if necessary and integrating this alongside the same kilometre-long line that manufactures hybrid Qashqai and Juke models.
