Nissan Plans To Build EV's and Batteries in the US

The Nikkei is reporting plans by automaker, Nissan to produce electric vehicles and Lithium Ion batteries right here in the United States. The facilities will reside at the North American headquarters in Smyrna, Tennessee.

Plans call for new electric-car assembly lines to be built at a plant in Smyrna, Tennessee, the location of Nissan North America Inc.’s headquarters. This facility will be capable of churning out 50,000 to 100,000 of the eco-friendly vehicles a year by 2012. It is expected to first produce a small passenger car, with additional models to be added later.

Nissan intends to construct a production facility for high-capacity lithium ion batteries at the Smyrna site by joining hands with the NEC Corp. group. Although the batteries will initially be supplied only to Nissan, the plant may be expanded to accommodate orders from other firms. The facility may eventually produce enough batteries to equip 200,000 vehicles a year.