A Nissan LEAF is providing the sparkle for
Nissan Sunderland Plant’s Christmas display to celebrate production milestone of 250,000 of the pioneering electric vehicle (EV) in the UK. Demonstrating the ability of the LEAF to act as a mobile power plant, the lights on the 32ft Christmas tree and its shimmering reindeer are being powered by the vehicle’s battery, using V2X technology.
Alan Johnson, vice president manufacturing at Nissan Sunderland Plant, said: “Passing a quarter of a million Nissan LEAFs is a tremendous milestone, and demonstrates the EV 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 new versions of the Qashqai and Juke models launched, so lighting up the Christmas tree with our original EV is a spectacular and appropriate way to end 2022.”
The Nissan LEAF‘s vehicle-to-grid capability (sometimes called vehicle-to-building or vehicle-to-everything - V2X) puts energy management back in the hands of the owner by turning their vehicle into a mobile energy hub. Drivers can store electricity in their vehicle’s battery and feed it to the grid, their building, or even their Christmas Tree, when required.
The technology allows EVs to be fully integrated into the electricity grid and help improve grid capability to handle renewable power as well as managing energy more efficiently.
The Nissan LEAF, built in Sunderland for more than a decade, is the world’s first mass-market EV. The Nissan Qashqai, the record-breaking crossover, is now offered with Nissan's unique e-POWER system, a first for the company in Europe, while its B-segment stablemate, the Nissan Juke, is now equipped with an advanced hybrid powertrain.
In 2021 Nissan’s Sunderland Plant was announced as the home of EV36ZERO, a £1 billion flagship EV manufacturing ecosystem bringing together EVs, renewable energy and battery production.