Nissan Sunderland Plant Advances Electric Vehicle Production with Major Upgrades
The Nissan Sunderland plant, Britain's largest car factory with a production capacity of up to 600,000 cars per year, has launched production of the third-generation Leaf following £450 million in upgrades. Despite this, the plant's output in 2024 was 282,000 vehicles, a 14% decline from 2023. The production line is capable of building the electric Leaf as well as hybrid models such as the Qashqai and Juke, demonstrating flexibility to transition between electric vehicles (EVs) and hybrids.
Adjacent to the Sunderland plant is the AESC gigafactory, which can produce 15.8 GWh of batteries annually—sufficient for approximately 300,000 cars. However, initial operational capacity targets 38 GWh, with only one of four battery lines active at launch as the factory awaits demand.
The Leaf continues to be the only high-volume electric model manufactured in Britain, with the recent upgrades aimed at future-proofing Nissan's UK operations for full EV production in response to growing demand. The UK government has supported the transition with £101 million in direct grants for new all-electric vehicles in 2022, supplementing earlier state aid totaling £61 million. Nissan itself invested about £450 million to upgrade the plant.
On the day the new Leaf was launched, the European Union proposed relaxing the 2035 ban on petrol and diesel vehicles to allow 10% internal combustion engine sales beyond that date. The UK has similarly weakened its zero-emission vehicle mandate. Nissan Europe CEO Massimiliano Messina did not provide a firm date for full electrification in Europe, suggesting 2050 as a more realistic timeline.
Sunderland remains central to Nissan's third turnaround plan, with a prior commitment to go all-electric in Europe by 2030. The company has spared the UK plant from closure planned for 2025 and has discussed possible manufacturing partnerships with Dongfeng, though no concrete plans have been confirmed.
