Nissan Will Lease its Battery Pack for the Leaf for $150 Per Month

The 2010 Nissan Leaf


Look like the cat is out of the bag as concerns Nissan's upcoming all electric vehicle, the Leaf. Until now, CEO Carlos Ghosn has declined to say whether the Lithium ion battery pack in the Leaf would be sold with the vehicle or leased. Apparently, the company has chosen the latter.

This is a two edged sword as the consumer will not have to worry about buying another battery pack in the future but they will have a monthly payment that never goes away.

Ghosn was asked if Nissan’s electric cars would be more expensive than similar conventional cars? This is his response:

“No. The electric car only makes sense if everyone can benefit. It must be for the customer at the same price as his gasoline equivalent in particular thanks to government aid. The battery will be leased for just under 100 euros ($150USD) per month. The cost of electricity consumption and the leasing of the battery will be lower than the cost of gasoline.” (translated from French)

What is your take on this strategic decision? Is it good or bad for the EV industry to have a never ending battery payment? Can we be sure that as technology costs decline, so will battery prices to the consumer? In other words, three or four years from now will I be able to swap in the pack for a cheaper one?