Nissan Announces $2.5 Billion to Build More EVs in U.K.

In a sign of the growing race for electric vehicle supremacy, Nissan will inject $1.4 billion into its British plant to build two major EV models.

The Japanese automaker said last week that its plans for electric versions of the Qashqai and Juke would require a total investment of $2.5 billion over the lifetime of the project. Nissan’s investment will create 7,000 jobsand it will support 30,000 people in the supply chain.

Britain is a key hub for the carmaker. In 2021, Nissan invested heavily in a U.K. plant when foreign investors were avoiding the country after Brexit led to years of uncertainty around the country’s trading relationships. 

The Nissan deal comes just months after India’s Tata Motors said it would invest $5 billion in a U.K. electric vehicle battery plant to supply its Jaguar Land Rover factories.

What does this mean for me? 

Industry analysts have described the Tata and Nissan battery plants as good progress, but argue that the U.K.needs much more EV battery production capacity to maintain a viable, growing auto industry.

Nissan plans to offer only fully electric cars in Europe by 2030. It said it would announce the names of the new EV models and timings for production launches at a later date.

The automaker’s latest U.K. investment comes despite Prime Minister Sunak’s decision in September to postpone a ban on sales of new gasoline vehicles by five years.