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Ever Wonder Where the Nissan Leaf’s Power Comes From?

A recently released video on Youtube shows the construction of the Nissan Leaf Battery in Smyrna, TN. The video does not report whether or not this is a 2015 or 2016 vintage battery pack.

One of the first things I noted was the “lack of” solar panels on the roof of the Smyrna Plant. Compare this to the plan in Japan that is covered with solar panels. I’m wondering why Nissan didn’t power the Tennessee plant with solar panels like the Tesla Giga Factory is going to have and the Nissan Plants in Japan already have? The only solar panels look to be over some EVSEs (Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment) in the parking lot.

The video shows Nissan workers visually inspecting each of the Nissan’s individual cell pairs. It also shows the cells being installed into the string and ultimately the full battery pack. It is a short video but interestingly these small packages of cells can store enough energy to take the Leaf up to 100 miles of range (2016 model) and in my case so far, given me almost 45,000 gas free pure electric miles.

Nissan Battery Plant Video

Comments

Aaron (not verified)    October 9, 2015 - 2:14AM

Three minutes on Google and I find out that: every single Nissan facility in the U.S. is Energy Star certified and that Nissan has been an EPA Energy Star Partner of the Year for three years running. Nissan also has some of the most energy-efficient raw-to-product manufacturing facilities on the globe. Unlike Tesla, which so far only has an outdated, old, under-utilized plant in California and a long-tailpipe importation process for its supplies along with a hole in the ground that they promise will some day be a battery-making facility.