Sunderland-built Leaf tops 200,000 sales as Nissan celebrates electric milestone

The car giant is celebrating a quarter of a million electric vehicle (EV) sales across the continent.

As well as the electric family car achieving 208,000 sales, 42,000 of the firm’s e-NV200 van have also been snapped up.

“Every bright idea starts with a spark,” said Leon Dorssers, Senior Vice President, Sales & Marketing, Nissan AMIEO.

"Just as the Nissan Leaf sparked the birth of modern EVs when it was introduced in 2010, today it continues to bring innovative technologies and advanced zero-emission powertrains to drivers around the globe – making the bright idea a mass-market reality.”

Nissan announced earlier this year that it was to build a new electric model at the Sunderland plant, while a new battery plant will be built nearby.

More than 1,600 jobs will be created at the Wearside factory and an estimated 4,500 in the plant’s supply chain, much of which is based in the region.

The carmaker will partner with Envision AESC, a global company in battery technology who will be building the gigafactory, and Sunderland City Council to create the new facility.

There will be three interconnected initiatives bringing together electric vehicles, renewable energy and battery production, which Nissan said sets a blueprint for the future of the automotive industry.

The new model will be a cross-over vehicle, but Nissan said it was too early to say when production will start.

The Sunderland plant is the sole manufacturer of Leaf in Europe, while the company’s future range of small vans will be manufactured in Maubeuge, France, and will include all-electric and internal combustion engine options.

Emmanuelle Serazin, Director Corporate Sales & LCV Europe said: “The Nissan e-NV200 has taken the electric revolution to the world of LCVs; it has offered the perfect balance of sustainability, practicality, convenience and low ownership costs and we look forward to a new chapter in our electrification strategy with a new electrified van coming soon.”

Nissan has announced the aim of electrifying 75% of its sales-mix in Europe by the end of 2023.

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