Nissan will work to offer a “flexible” mix of powertrain technologies to respond to fluctuating global demand for electric cars, but remains committed to its long-term electrification goals.
That’s according to CEO Makoto Uchida, who opened the 2024 Financial Times Future of the Car conference with an overview of Nissan’s global performance and evolving advances in electrification.
He spoke just over a month after Nissan unveiled its new “Arc” business strategy, under which the company will launch 30 new cars over the next two years, 16 of them electrified in some way, with the aim of to achieve a global sales mix of 40% electrified cars by 2026.
This plan was developed with the aim of adapting to an uncertain market environment, Uchida said, and will allow Nissan to gain a foothold in markets where the transition to electric vehicles is slower.
“We have always told you that electrification makes sense depending on the customer’s choice,” he said.
“We know that the current pace [of EV adoption] has slowed down, but our ultimate goal will be the same.
“How we keep our roadmap flexible enough to meet the current situation and move forward will be key. We need to differentiate our electrification strategy in each respective market. How flexibly we can adapt will be crucial.”
“We continue to stick to our goals, but the pace of the roadmap may need to be flexibly adjusted. What matters is whether we can provide the right product to meet customer demand – and of course customer acceptance and taste must be carefully monitored.”
Nissan recently hinted at plans to replace the Juke and Qashqai crossovers with all-electric equivalents in the coming years. Before that, Nissan will launch a third-generation Leaf and a Micro replacement based on alliance partner Renault’s new supermini 5.
In China, where Uchida acknowledges that Nissan must work to fend off new competitors and strengthen its brand perception locally, the company will launch five new electric models that it recently unveiled with concepts at the Beijing Motor Show.
Crucially, he said, these would be developed – in collaboration with joint venture partner Dongfeng – “in China, for China”, meaning they can be engineered and designed from the ground up to be specific to the tailored to the requirements and tastes of the Chinese market.
“We used to have a kind of global operation where we designed everything in Japan and adapted it for the US, Europe and China – but that scheme will no longer exist,” he said.
He did not rule out the possibility of exporting these Chinese-developed cars to other global markets, acknowledging that Nissan currently has “excess capacity” in its Chinese factories, but stressed that the cars are being developed primarily for China.