NISSAN IS to invest almost €500 million in two plants to make batteries for electric cars in Britain and Portugal after securing financial support from their governments.
Automakers around the world are exploring plans for mass electric car production as the industry seeks to haul itself out of a devastating downturn.
The Nissan news comes less than a week after Toyota said it would produce its first European-built hybrid car in Britain from 2010.
Nissan will invest more than €230 million in the plant near Sunderland, north east England.
“The two governments [UK and Portugal] have offered to extend financial assistance and other support to ensure that Nissan locates the proposed plants within their respective countries,” Nissan said in a statement.
It will also build a similar plant in Portugal, though the exact location of this plant has yet to be chosen. Each plant would produce 60,000 batteries a year.
A Nissan spokeswoman said the details of grants had yet to be finalised, but added that the firm was also in talks with Britain over where to locate the production of electric cars.
Last year the Portuguese government, Nissan, and its French partner Renault signed a deal to build 1,300 electric car charging stations by the end of 2011.
Nissan Europe vice-president Eric Nicolas said the new plants will export batteries to Nissan factories in other European countries and possibly also to other electric car manufacturers.
He said that, if the electric car business goes well, Nissan may expand the two plants or build a new one in Europe. Nissan plans to have battery production factories in the US, Europe and Asia.
– Reuters