New One Billion Nissan EV36Zero Hub Announced

Published Date: 2nd Jul 2021

Nissan has announced a £1 billion investment in a new EV36Zero Hub in Sunderland which will be used to manufacture new EV vehicles starting with a new full electric Crossover model, it has been muted that a Nissan Leaf successor could be manufactured there in the future too.

The word is that the new Crossover model yet to be unveiled, will be built on the same platform, and could be a smaller sibling of the futuristic looking new Nissan Ariya which will go on sale in the UK later this year.

Nissan have teased on the new model saying it will include ’next-generation vehicle styling, efficiency and battery technology’, if the Ariya styling is anything to go by it will certainly feature radical styling.

The hub is being built in partnership with Envision AESC, a leading manufacturer of electric car batteries, meaning batteries, components, and electric vehicles will all be built side by side. It is estimated that there will be over 1600 jobs created in the Northeast at the Nissan and Envision plants, with a further 4500+ jobs along the supply chain.

Envision has been producing batteries for the extremely popular Nissan Leaf since 2012 and for Nissan’s eNV200 van also.

The new hub will be an extension of Nissan’s existing Sunderland plant where Nissan already employs 6000 staff. Nissan’s flagship Crossover model the Qashqai is built there, along with its little brother the Juke.

We recently wrote a review of the impressive new Qashqai model here; it’s been the UK’s bestselling car of its type for a long time, despite stiff competition for an ever-increasing number of rival and popular new SUVs/Crossovers on the market. If you purchase a Qashqai or a Juke you are supporting the UK economy and the workforce of 6000 at the plant.

The Government has set a target of 2030 for the ban on sales of new petrol or diesel vehicles, while some hybrids are set to be banned too, although the criteria has not yet been set for such vehicles. The new EV hub will help accelerate Nissan’s progress towards producing more EV models and a zero-emissions model line-up.