Nissan's £1billion plan for 'gigafactory' in Sunderland

Nissan have greeted the 'business-friendly' post-Brexit UK, with COO Ashwani Gupta saying his firm was using it as an 'opportunity to move forward'.

He outlined how the Japanese car giant was set to build a new electric model and huge battery plant in the North East.

More than 1,600 jobs will be created in Sunderland and an estimated 4,500 in supply companies under an investment of £1billion.

The firm will invest more than £420million in building a new-generation all-electric vehicle.

Unveiling the Nissan EV36Zero at the Sunderland plant, Mr Gupta hailed Brexit as an 'opportunity'.

He said: 'The key success factor for Brexit has always been trade friendly business conditions to sustain our business not only in the UK but in the whole of Europe and thanks to Brexit, Nissan is moving forward to use Brexit as an opportunity.'

He added: 'This is a landmark day for Nissan, our partners, the UK and the automotive industry as a whole.

'Nissan EV36Zero will transform the idea of what is possible for our industry and set a road map for the future for all.

'We reached a new frontier with the Nissan LEAF, the world's first mass-market all-electric vehicle.

'Now, with our partners, Nissan will pioneer the next phase of the automotive industry as we accelerate towards full electrification and carbon neutrality.'

Nissan said its Electric Vehicle (EV) Hub will be a world-first EV manufacturing ecosystem.

The car-maker will partner with Envision AESC, a global company in battery technology, and Sunderland City Council.

There will be three interconnected initiatives bringing together electric vehicles, renewable energy and battery production, which Nissan said sets a blueprint for the future of the automotive industry.

Nissan president and chief executive Makoto Uchida said: 'This project comes as part of Nissan's pioneering efforts to achieve carbon neutrality throughout the entire lifecycle of our products.