Lifeline for Nissan Sunderland: Boss says it will assemble more EVs at UK factory after global jobs bombshell

Nissan’s Sunderland factory and its 6,000 staff have received a lifeline from the company’s chief executive who yesterday hinted Britain’s biggest car plant might be spared in its monumental cost-saving survival plan.

On Tuesday, Nissan announced its 2024-25 financial results, posting a £3.8billion loss on the back of a crash in demand in its two largest markets, the US and China.

New chief executive Ivan Espinosa, who took over the helm on 1 April, simultaneously announced the ‘Re:Nissan action-based recovery plan’ – a £1.3billion cost-saving drive to haul the company out of the red.

It includes shuttering seven of its global vehicle manufacturing plants, slashing its workforce by 20,000 people, and pausing new product plans beyond 2026.

The announcement raised alarm bells at Nissan’s UK car production site in the North East, which is one of the biggest employers in the region. 

It also triggered a reaction from the UK Government, with Downing Street immediately asking the Japanese manufacturer to share full details of its proposals.

However, during a conference call following Tuesday’s statement, Espinosa provided some relief, saying the company will push ahead with ‘assembling more electric models in Sunderland’. 

Following Nissan’s statement confirming it will reduce its global manufacturing footprint from 17 to just 10 sites by 2027 to cut costs, This is Money on Tuesday contacted the car maker to confirm whether its Sunderland factory – Nissan’s only European production plant – is one of those on the chopping block.

But while the manufacturer declined to comment, Espinosa provided some cautious optimism in a press call later in the day.

During the conference, the Nissan president and chief executive said: ‘In Europe, we will strengthen our presence by assembling more electric models in Sunderland.’

It comes just weeks after the brand unveiling three new EVs it claimed would be produced at the UK plant.

In March, it released first details of the all-new Leaf, a revived EV version of the iconic Micra supermini (likely to share a platform with the Renault 5), and an all-electric Juke.

All were promised to be launched to market before the end of 2026 – importantly, ahead of Nissan’s proposed product development pause announced in its cost-cutting strategy.

It also said earlier in that year that Qashqai – one of Britain’s best-selling cars and a model largely credited with pioneering the SUV trend – will be upgraded at the Sunderland factory.

Providing additional confidence for the UK factory’s future was this week’s announcement that Nissan’s battery partner – AESC UK – has received a £1billion of investment for its new gigafactory close to the Sunderland car plant.

This second battery factory in the region – and set to become the UK’s largest car battery production site – will supply cells for the three new EVs Nissan has promised.

The deal comprises £680million of funding from a group of banks (including BBVA, HSBC, the SMBC Group, Société Générale and Standard Chartered), guaranteed by two UK government bodies, the National Wealth Fund and UK Export Finance. 

The remaining £320million comes from private financiers and Envision itself.

Government asks Nissan to share cost-saving details

Nissan Sunderland is Britain’s biggest car producer.

Last year, 282,124 vehicles – including Jukes, Leaf EVs and Qashqais – were built there. 

This was more than any other auto manufacturer in the country and its output represented more than one in three passenger cars made in UK factories in 2024.

However, production was down 13.2 per cent on 2023.

Last month, Alan Johnson, senior vice president for manufacturing, had warned MPs that the UK was ‘not a competitive place’ to build cars as he called for Government support.

Speaking to the House of Commons’ Business and Trade Committee on 23 April, Mr Johnson said Sunderland ‘pays more for its electricity than any other Nissan plant in the world’ – after disclosing that it was cutting back evening shifts in order to save money. 

Following this warning and Nissan’s cost-saving plans, the UK Government stepped in yesterday to ask for more information at a ‘concerning’ time for workers in Sunderland.

A Number 10 spokesman said: ‘We recognise this will be a concerning time for workers at Nissan and their families.

‘Whilst this is a global decision taken for commercial reasons, we have a long-standing partnership with Nissan and will continue to work closely with them on their manufacturing future in the UK.

‘We’ve asked the company to share its full plan so we can assess the impact in the UK.’

A spokesperson for Nissan responded on Tuesday: ‘We are currently in detailed study within the company regarding the announced plant closures. 

‘At this stage, we are not able to inform you which plants will be affected.’ 

In February, Nissan confirmed that a late shift on one of the Sunderland factory’s assembly lines would closed, but no jobs were lost after some 400 affected workers were moved other production lines to ‘maximise efficiency’.

Part of its cost-saving and restructuring plan to help ‘create a leaner, more resilient business’ is to lay-off around 20,000 staff, slashing its global workforce by 15 per cent.

This is 11,000 additional cuts on top of the 9,000 roles it proposed axing in November.