Nissan will go fully electric across the UK by 2030
The Nissan boss said the world “needs to move on” and confirmed plans to make electric cars in Britain.
Just days after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak delayed a ban on new petrol and diesel engines from 2030 to 2035, Makoto Uchida said: “There is no turning back.” The world needs to move on from internal combustion engines. We have the responsibility to be part of the solution.”
And the 57-year-old said Nissan would be all-electric by 2030, with the Sunderland plant at the center of plans to go green, despite Sunak’s delay.
Makoto Uchida, head of Nissan
The announcement undercuts claims that the Prime Minister’s decision last week to delay a ban on new petrol and diesel cars by five years would hit crucial investments in Britain.
Nissan employs more than 7,000 workers in the UK, including 6,000 at its Sunderland plant, where it makes the Qashqai and Juke SUVs, and the all-electric Leaf.
It also has a battery factory, a design center in London and an engineering center in Cranfield, Bedfordshire. All will play a key role in creating the next generation of electric cars, Uchida said.
At an event to celebrate the design centre’s 20th anniversary, he said: ‘Here in the UK we will design and develop the electric vehicle of the future. It will be built in Sunderland.’
Referring to Sunak’s decision, Uchida said: “From now on, all new Nissans launched in Europe will be electric. It’s the right thing to do.’
Toyota and Jaguar Land Rover praised the ban’s delay as “pragmatic” but Ford warned it could hit investment.
