Tennessee To Be Testing Ground for Nissan EVs
07/23/2008
SustainableBusiness.com News
Nissan (Nasdaq: NSANY) and the State of Tennessee are forming a partnership to promote zero-emission vehicles, including electric vehicles, with participation from the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA).
Carlos Ghosn, President and CEO of Nissan Motor Co., announced the agreement during the dedication of Nissan Americas, a newly completed building in Franklin serving as the coordination point for the company's operations in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Ghosn and Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen signed the agreement during a meeting Monday night in Nashville.
"The State of Tennessee is proud to join Nissan, TVA and others in promoting use of zero-emission vehicles, including electric vehicles," Bredesen said. "Our clean-energy future depends on our ability to find real strategies for encouraging Tennesseans to adopt a zero-emission mindset."
For his part, Bredesen has agreed to explore strategies in which the state might help support the deployment of infrastructure for electric vehicles, including charging stations in public places. The collaboration will initially focus on the region's heavily trafficked Interstate 24 and Interstate 65 corridors.
"As the nation's largest public power supplier, TVA is looking forward to being part of this project to explore the potential of electric vehicles," said TVA Chairman William B. Sansom.
Nissan and its electric vehicle alliance partner Renault (RNL.F) have begun similar ZEV initiatives in Israel, Denmark and, just two weeks ago, in Portugal.
In Israel and Denmark, the Alliance will be working with Project Better Place, which will create an infrastructure of charging stations. Vehicles for those two initiatives will be provided by Renault and lithium-ion batteries to power the vehicles will be provided by Nissan, through its Automotive Energy Supply Company joint venture.
Nissan has a five-year business plan to introduce ZEVs in the United States in 2010 and to mass market them globally two years later.