The Nissan deal will see the company make its electric car, the LEAF, in Sunderland. The manufacturer hopes the project, in which the Government has invested £20.7 million, will eventually produce 50,000 vehicles and 60,000 electric batteries each year.

Andy Palmer, senior Vice President responsible for Nissan's global electric vehicle strategy, said: "Thanks to the UK's firm commitment to a low carbon future in terms of infrastructure, customer incentives and educational programmes, Nissan LEAF will be built at Sunderland, making the UK the third country in the world to produce this revolutionary car".

The move represents a total investment of £420 million by Nissan in its UK operations.

Business Secretary Lord Mandelson said of the deal: “This investment is a fantastic vote of confidence in the Sunderland plant and its excellent workforce. The automotive sector is of key importance to the UK. It supports R&D, technological innovation, skills and a supply chain that’s a mainstay of the wider manufacturing sector.”

Supported by Government loan guarantees of £360 million, the Ford agreement will see the firm pour £1.5 billion into its UK research & development arm - the aim being to design environmentally-friendly engines and its own electric car. The deal will see the company invest an unspecified figure in its Bridgend factory, with new jobs possibly in the pipeline.

The move builds on Ford’s existing relationship with the country’s car industry, which sees 25 per cent of all its engines worldwide - and over half of all Ford diesel engines - made in the UK.

Lord Mandelson said the scheme would go some way to making the UK a “world-leader” in the electric car sector: “The Government stands ready and willing to support these innovative research & development projects, backed by a highly skilled workforce.”


                                                                                      Cecilia Helland