Renault-Nissan prevé situar las fábricas cerca de las plantas que vayan a producir los vehículos eléctricos, según señaló el responsable para África, Oriente Próximo, India y Europa, Colin Dodge.
España esté entre los candidatos, ya que la planta de Renault en Valladolid y la de Nissan en Barcelona son candidatas a la fabricación de sendos modelos eléctricos. Nissan sólo tiene plantas en Europa en Reino Unido y Barcelona.
El Gobierno de Portugal y Nissan firmaron una Carta de Intenciones para estudiar la implantación de una fábrica de baterías de iones de litio en Portugal. Este hecho podría convertir a Portugal en el segundo país, después de Japón, donde Nissan invierte en unas instalaciones de fabricación para sus avanzadas baterías de iones de litio.
El establecimiento de una fábrica y base de suministro con la cooperación del Gobierno portugués situaría al país en el centro de los planes de Nissan para producir vehículos eléctricos en serie para Europa y el resto del mundo en 2012.
La Alianza Renault-Nissan llevará los vehículos eléctricos a Portugal a principios de 2011, lo cual convertirá a este país en uno de los primeros en recibir vehículos eléctricos de la Alianza.
Otros de los países que entrarían en la puja son Irlanda, Dinamarca y Francia. Renault lanzará cuatro modelos eléctricos en 2011. Entre las decisiones que inclinarán la balanza estarán las ayudas gubernamentales a este tipo de vehículos, señaló Dodge. Así, el ministerio de Industria ha creado el plan Movele por el que ofrece ayudas de hasta 7.500 euros para la compra de un coche eléctrico. Subvencionar la compra de estos autos era también una de las condiciones del grupo para adjudicar a sus plantas españolas su producción.
Nissan creo una factoría de baterías de iones de litio en Japón junto a la empresa de electrónica NEC, donde tiene previsto fabricar 65.000 baterías al año. También abrirá otra fábrica en EE UU en 2010.
Las baterías suponen cerca del 50% del coste de un vehículo eléctrico, por lo que cualquier decisión es clave para el futuro industrial de un país como España, donde el sector de la automoción es uno de los más importantes.
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Decisão da Nissan para fábrica de baterias será tomada "nas próximas semanas"
O vice-presidente da Nissan, Carlos Tavares, anunciou que Portugal continua na lista dos países europeus candidatos à instalação de uma nova fábrica de produção de baterias. A decisão será comunicada "nas próximas semanas, durante o Verão".
"Portugal está a competir com outras localizações europeias a anunciar em breve pela Renault-Nissan", disse o gestor na conferência de apresentação da rede de mobilidade eléctrica em Portugal e da qual a marca vai também beneficiar.
Em Março passado, na assinatura da carta de intenções com o Governo português para estudar a possibilidade de instalar uma fábrica de baterias, o construtor automóvel previa que a decisão fosse anunciada até ao final de Verão.
A fábrica de baterias de iões de lítio da Nissan poderá atingir, segundo esta, um investimento entre 300 e 400 milhões de euros e criar 300 postos de trabalho directos e ter uma capacidade produtiva de 50 mil baterias de iões de lítio.
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Europe: Renault-Nissan plans four battery plants
The Renault-Nissan alliance plans to build up to four li-ion battery production facilities in Europe, vertically integrated with the OEMs’ plans for EV launches from 2011. However, no locations have yet been decided, according to Nissan executive vice president Colin Dodge, speaking at a zero emissions mobility workshop at Nissan’s European HQ.
AESC, Nissan’s JV with NEC, opened its first Japanese battery plant in June, and Nissan has also confirmed plans to build a Tennessee battery plant next year.
The standard Renault-Nissan li-ion battery packs will weigh 250kg, so logistics costs will be significant, if not compared with the packs’ initial cost (unconfirmed by Nissan, but likely to be in the region of US$3,000) and depreciation.
The European battery plants are expected to be designed for an annual capacity of 65,000 units a year, as is the Japanese AESC plant.
Last month Nissan announced they would start production of their batteries in Japan this year and has plans to open a US battery plant in Tennessee. One of Nissan’s most important goals is to localize battery production to the various markets thay plan on selling their electric cars in. Nissan plans to release it’s first mass market electric vehicle in many markets around the world including the US, Portugal, Denmark, Israel, and Japan by the end of 2010/early 2011.
Along with French partner Renault SA, Nissan is aiming to become the first to mass-market pure electric cars with a global roll-out in 2012. Nissan has a joint venture with Japan’s NEC Corp. to develop and produce lithium-ion batteries, a key component that is seen as the biggest hurdle to lowering the cost of electric cars.
The high cost of setting up a lithium-ion battery factory, however, means Nissan is heavily dependent on state aid to succeed in its ambitious zero-emission push — a risk that executives acknowledge.
"I guess it’s fair to say that if we couldn’t access government funds in this environment, we’d have to slow down the development because of the enormity of the investments," Palmer said.
Last month, Nissan, Ford Motor Co. and California-based start-up Tesla Motors Inc. became the first to receive approval for the U.S. Department of Energy’s loans earmarked to build fuel-efficient vehicles in the United States.
Nissan will get $1.6 billion to build a battery assembly facility and retool an existing line to build a new electric car at its Smyrna, Tenn., site starting in 2012. It aims to build up to 150,000 electric vehicles there a year.
Palmer said the battery production portion alone for the U.S. site would cost just over $1 billion, making up the bulk of the loan. The site would house three "modules," equivalent to production of 54,000 battery units, with each module costing $350 million, he said.
Nissan has also announced plans to build batteries in Japan and is negotiating with several governments on a site in Europe.
Developing an electric vehicle also costs more than a conventional gasoline-engine car, he said. "Normal car development cost is about $300 to $500 million, and EVs are above the upper range of that."
Despite the huge outlays and the reliance for now on government support, Palmer said zero-emission cars would present a viable business for Nissan once mass-production and marketing begin in 2012.
"(Electric vehicles) aren’t going to be subsidized forever. We’re looking at two stages: initially, at the 2010 launch — that’s when we’ll get all of the buzz and the aid and all the rest of it.
"That’s why we’re talking about mass-marketing in 2012, 2013. That’s when it becomes a viable, mass business in our business model."
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