Nissan is marking its electric milestone in lights, as it celebrates the 250,000th Leaf electric car rolling off its production line with a dazzling festive display.
The motor manufacturer is using electric vehicle technology as the sole power supply for its Christmas decorations at the entrance of the Washington production site, with a Leaf rigged up to tree lights to power them. Star of the show is a 32-foot high Christmas tree.
Nissan began building the Leaf EV at the Sunderland plant in 2013, and this year started to produce electric versions of the Qashqai and Juke models.
Like many of the latest electric cars on the market, the current Leaf has vehicle-to-grid - or V2X - technology, meaning it can become a mobile power supply for household products, which Nissan decided to demonstrate by using the Leaf as a power source for its festive display. The V2X system allows drivers to use electricity stored in their vehicle’s battery to power a variety of appliances, including a fridge-freezer, laptops and kettles, by using a three-pin plug converter that slots into the charging socket.
Alan Johnson, manufacturing boss at Nissan Sunderland Plant, said: "Passing a quarter of a million Nissan Leaf is a tremendous milestone, and demonstrates the electric vehicle manufacturing expertise we have built up at our plant over the past decade. 'This year we have completely electrified the plant’s line-up with the new versions of Qashqai and Juke launched, so lighting up the Christmas tree with our original EV is a spectacular and appropriate way to end 2022."
Construction of a battery gigafactory next door to the car production plant started this month, which will will employ more than 1,000 people when it becomes fully operational, which will likely be around 2025. The Nissan plant, which opened in 1984, employs 6,000 people and supports a further 27,000 UK automotive supply chain jobs, ¾ of which are in North East England.
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