Member Article

NECC welcome Nissan announcement

The North East Chamber of Commerce (NECC) have welcomed the announcement that Nissan UK will produce a new hatchback car at its Sunderland plant.

The as-yet-unnamed model will now lead to the creation of around 225 jobs at the factory, along with a further 900 in the supply chain by 2014. The £127 million investment in the project has been supported by £8.2 million from the Government’s’ Regional Growth Fund.

Commenting on the announcement, NECC Chief Executive James Ramsbotham said: “Barely a month goes by without yet another exciting announcement from Nissan.

“I would like to congratulate the company and its incredible workforce on another major coup for the Wearside plant.

“The unparalleled level of performance from the Wearside workforce can only have served to convince Nissan’s senior management that Sunderland is the perfect place to oversee production of this new vehicle, coming hot on the heels of last month’s announcement that it had secured the new compact model.”

This news will provide good news for not only the local economy and Nissan’s North East supply chain, but for the UK automotive sector as a whole.

Nissan’s impact on the regional economy is high, and for every person employed by the company, another four are supported in Nissan’s supply chain. The car manufacturer also recently announced that employment at the plant had reached a record high.

Mr Ramsbotham added: “Today’s announcement, couple with securing the Invitation, the Sunderland Plant set to launch Nissan’s first lithium-ion battery production facility outside Japan and preparations well underway for the start of Nissan LEAF production in 2013, the year ahead looks incredibly exciting for the company.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .