Nissan boosting British car industry with the Leaf

Around 2,000 jobs in the North East were bolstered today, as it emerged that Japanese car manufacturer Nissan is to build a innovative electric car plant in Sunderland.

The five seater model, to be known as the Leaf, will be manufactured in Sunderland from 2013, after an influx of investment from Nissan, the Department of Business and the European Investment Bank. Total investment in the region is expected to be over the £637 million mark.

The Times reports that around 50,000 'Leaf's' are to be produced at the Sunderland plant, to complement other outlets in Oppama, Japan and Tennessee, US.

The Leaf will provide more choice for green minded car buyers, running in competition with Toyota's Prius - an electric/petrol hybrid. It is expected that the Leaf will spawn a whole range of solely electric cars from other brands.

The electric hatchback will have a range of around 100 miles, with a top speed of 90 mph and will be promoted as ''the world's first affordable, mass-produced, zero emission car.''

The Telegraph comments that to complement the launch of the Leaf, the North East Regional Development Agency has promised to install 1,300 charging points in the region, creating special parking spaces and priority road lanes.

Managing director of Nissan UK, Paul Wilcox, commented on the news, saying: ''This is a significant vote of confidence for Sunderland.''

Meanwhile, Business Secretary, Lord Mandelson was cited in The Guardian as saying: ''Today's news from Nissan, with support from government, shows that by working together we can achieve our aim of making the UK a world leader in ultra-low carbon vehicles.''

 

Chris Banks, Derby, Lexus IS 250

Mark Prior, Gloucester, AUDI A8 SPORT QUATTRO