http://www.energyefficiencynews.com/articles/i/5142/?cid=3

 

Japanese carmaker Nissan is to make its new 100% electric van the e-NV200 in Barcelona, Spain starting in 2013, the company has announced.

 

With the allocation of production of all-electric van to the company's Barcelona plant, will come an investment of euro 100 million and around 700 new jobs.

The e-NV200 will be Nissan's second all-electric offering after the LEAF, which is currently being rolled out across Europe and elsewhere.

The Barcelona plant will be the sole producer of the new van, while Nissan's Avila plant in central Spain will be producing a new medium-duty truck, indicating the current competitiveness of Spain's industrial operations.

"[The] e-NV200 represents a genuine breakthrough in commercial vehicles and further underlines Nissan's leadership within the electric vehicle segment," says Nissan's executive vice president Andy Palmer.

Production of the e-NV200 is the latest part of Nissan's bid to become the world's largest manufacturer of low-carbon vehicles. Last year, the company sold more than one million low-carbon vehicles worldwide.

Nissan has just undertaken a trial of the e-NV200 with British Gas in the UK, which it hailed a success, and the standard NV200 has been selected by New York City as its 'taxi of tomorrow'.

The company says it will take on board the results of the British Gas trial and others currently underway in Europe ahead of the start of production of the e-NV200 next year.

Meanwhile, US electric carmaker Tesla Motors is starting deliveries of its all-electric sedan, the Model S.

The first Californian customers of the Model S will receive their new vehicles on June 22 and the company has plans to deliver 5000 by the end of the year. Tesla says it currently has reservations of more than 10,000 for the Model S.

The car can seat five adults and two children in optional rear-facing seats and features a second trunk because the revolutionary drivetrain sits under the floor of the car.

The all-electric sedan can accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in as little as 4.4 seconds

"In 2006, our plan was to build an electric sports car followed by an affordable electric sedan," says Elon Musk, Tesla Motors CEO. "Delivering [the] Model S is a key part of that plan and represents Tesla's transition to a mass-production automaker."