This photo, taken in the UK on December 18, 2020, shows the rear of a Nissan Leaf electric vehicle.
Ian Forsyth | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Nissan’s CEO on Tuesday reiterated the importance of electric vehicles to the automaker’s future, telling CNBC that his company will “build on our strengths to electrify 100% of our brand new vehicle offerings in key markets by the early 2030s.” “”
Makoto Uchida’s comments echo an announcement made by Nissan in late January when the company stated that the Japanese, European, U.S. and Chinese markets would be at the center of its electrification target for new vehicles.
In his interview with CNBC’s Street Signs Europe, Uchida also addressed the global shortage of semiconductors in the automotive industry, stating that it was “affecting our domestic and foreign production.”
The increased demand for devices and electronic devices during the coronavirus pandemic has contributed to global pressure on the availability of semiconductors. This has hit the automotive industry, which is heavily dependent on technology, particularly hard.
“We are working with our suppliers to minimize this impact,” added Uchida, “and we are closely monitoring the situation and adjusting our production. We are aware that the uncertainties will persist.”
For the three months ended December 31, Nissan operating profit reached 27.1 billion yen, compared to 22.7 billion yen for the same period last year.
For the fiscal year ending March 31, Nissan now expects a net loss of 530 billion yen or around 5.1 billion US dollars. The company had previously forecast a net loss of 615 billion yen.
The company has also revised its sales outlook to 4.015 million units from a previous forecast of 4.165 million units, a decrease of 3.6%.
times are changing
As governments around the world announce plans to move away from diesel and gasoline vehicles, Nissan, along with many other automakers, seeks to expand its electric offering and challenge companies like Elon Musk’s Tesla.
The South Korean car maker Kia will launch its first special electric vehicle this year, while the German Volkswagen Group is investing around 35 billion euros in battery-electric vehicles and intends to bring around 70 fully electric models to market by 2030.
Last month, the CEO of Daimler told CNBC that the automotive industry was “in the midst of a change”.
“In addition to the things that we know well – to be honest, building the most coveted cars in the world – there are two technological trends on which we are doubling down: electrification and digitization,” Ola Källenius told CNBC’s Annette Weisbach.
The Stuttgart-based company has “invested billions in these new technologies,” he added, explaining that they would “advance our path to carbon-free driving.” This decade, he continued, was “transformative”.