AUTONEWS

Nissan posts big losses, EV plans to change

Nissan said on Thursday it would report a net loss of 700 billion to 750 billion yen ($4.9 billion to $5.3 billion) for its fiscal year ending March 31.

The Japanese automaker blamed the huge loss — a record for the company — on “its ongoing turnaround plan,” among other factors.

According to Motor1, Nissan has faced significant setbacks in the past 12 months and may not have much time to turn things around. The previous CEO’s turnaround plan has not gone as planned. This culminated in a failed merger attempt with Honda in February, which resulted in Makoto Uchida being replaced by Ivan Espinoza at the helm of the company.

Nissan has also had to lay off workers and reduce its production capacity. “We are taking steps to revise our full-year outlook, reflecting a thorough review of our performance and the carrying value of our manufacturing assets,” Espinosa said in a statement announcing the company’s revised financial outlook.

More than 500 billion yen ($3.5 billion) of that loss relates to impairments in North America, Europe, Latin America and Japan, according to the company. An impairment is when an asset suffers a permanent decrease in value, and while Nissan will lose more money than ever, the company has 1.5 trillion yen ($10.5 million) in net cash.

In the U.S., Nissan actually saw sales increase in 2024, up 5.4 percent from 2023.

Nissan will report its annual results for fiscal 2024 on May 13.

Nissan also said it was canceling plans for two electric sedans in the U.S., as it plans to focus on SUVs.

These are two electric sedans that were originally planned to be produced in the United States (as a replacement for the Maxima and Altima). Now, it has been confirmed that these models have been officially canceled, as well as changes to the electric crossover plans.

Nissan has confirmed that changing market conditions have forced it to re-evaluate the EV projects that were originally planned for the Canton, Mississippi location.

“In response to recent changes in market conditions in the industry, we have decided to revise our plans for the EV family of projects,” Nissan said in a statement.

In addition to these, an electric crossover codenamed PZ1L was also planned, but it was also canceled.

Nissan is not giving up on its EV plans at the Mississippi plant completely, however. In January 2028, Nissan plans to begin production of a new electric SUV, known internally as the PZ1K. It will be joined by an Infiniti version, known internally as the PZ1J, which will go into production in May 2028.

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