YOKOHAMA, Japan – Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. today announced that the replacement for the current Nissan Micra compact car will be manufactured at a Renault plant in Europe. Due to start production in 2016, the vehicle will be exported across Europe’s left-hand drive markets.
Under the Nissan Power 88 six-year business plan, the company will launch, on average, one new model every six weeks for the duration of the plan. Consequently, available capacity across the relevant plants in the Nissan manufacturing network is already planned to be fully utilized and led the company to look at alternatives within the Renault-Nissan Alliance.
Driven by sales and share expansion across Europe and Russia, Nissan’s manufacturing capacity in Europe and India (the current source for the Micra) will be fully utilized in the mid-term period. The decision to propose the vehicle to Renault to build at one of its European plants benefits Nissan in several ways including capital expense reduction, foreign exchange exposure reduction and working capital reduction through shorter supply chains.
Commenting on the decision to propose consignment of the vehicle to a Renault plant, Trevor Mann, Chairman of the Management Committee, Nissan Europe said: “Nissan is pleased to leverage the economic and logistical benefits of sourcing the next generation Micra at a forecasted annual volume of 82,000 units from a Renault plant in Europe. Nissan already sources powertrain from the Cleon facility and the NV400 light commercial vehicle from the Batilly plant.”
The Nissan Micra, also sold under the March name in certain markets, is one of the company’s most enduring and recognized products. As a global vehicle, the next generation of Micra will also continue to be manufactured outside of Europe, consistent with Nissan’s optimized global sourcing strategy.
About Nissan
Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., Japan’s second-largest automotive company, is headquartered in Yokohama, Japan, and is part of the Renault-Nissan Alliance. Operating with more than 248,000 employees globally, Nissan provided customers with more than 4.8 million vehicles in 2011, generating revenue of 9.4 trillion yen ($US118.95 billion). With a strong commitment to developing exciting and innovative products for all, Nissan delivers a comprehensive range of 64 models under the Nissan and Infiniti brands. A pioneer in zero-emission mobility, Nissan made history with the introduction of the Nissan LEAF, the first affordable, mass-market, pure-electric vehicle and winner of numerous international accolades, including the prestigious 2011-2012 Car of the Year Japan and 2011 World Car of the Year awards.