Nissan Motor Co.’s Chinese battery partner plans a U.K. project "very soon,” according to its chief executive officer, amid expectations that the Japanese carmaker will forge ahead with expansion plans in Britain.
Nissan may announce an agreement with Envision Group to upgrade a battery factory in Sunderland, England, as soon as this week, according to a person familiar with the matter. The project is part of a revamp of the automaker’s U.K. electric-car strategy, said the person, who asked not to be identified as the plans are still confidential.
A U.K. project would put Envision on an expansion course in Europe. The company plans to spend as much as €2 billion (¥264 billion, $2.4 billion) on a battery plant in northern France to power an affordable range of Renault SA electric vehicles. French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday unveiled the project at Renault’s assembly plant in Douai, where the Envision battery facility will be located. It’s the first in Europe for the Chinese company, which also makes wind turbines.