Nissan is halving Leaf production due to supplier difficulties in meeting demand for new batteries, UNN reports with reference to Autoblog.
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The third-generation Leaf is one of the models Nissan is counting on to bring the company back to stability. After years of declining global sales and large losses, the automaker needs a strong boost in the EV segment to remain competitive.
The new Leaf looks compelling on paper. It ditches the traditional hatchback body for a compact crossover profile and is built on the same CMF-EV platform as the larger Nissan Ariya. Range is increased by more than 30%, and prices in the US start at just under $30,000, which is cheaper than the previous model and is on the list of the most affordable new EVs expected in the 2026 model year. Even before the first unit appeared in showrooms, this formula seemed to be what Nissan needed.
However, the launch of Nissan's production faced difficulties long before the planned start of customer deliveries. Production at the Tochigi plant (Japan) was reduced to less than half of the initial plan for the period from September to November, with the reduction amounting to several thousand units in some months. The problem is not in demand or labor shortages, but in the lack of suitable batteries, the publication writes.
AESC, a Yokohama-based supplier partly owned by Nissan, has struggled to produce enough high-quality batteries for the new model. Due to lower-than-expected production volumes, the plant was left without the supplies needed to maintain the planned production pace.
The new Leaf is expected to arrive at US dealers later this year as a 2026 model. Sales in Japan will begin by the end of the year, with deliveries to Europe in the same year. For a car intended to lead Nissan's recovery, small supplies are a serious risk. The company reported a net loss of 670.8 billion yen (about $4.6 billion) for the fiscal year ending March 2025, and dropped out of the top ten global automakers after a six percent drop in sales in the first half of the year.
Nissan once led the EV market when the first-generation Leaf debuted in 2010, but now competition from Tesla, BYD, and new domestic players like the Honda's N-One e: mini EV has intensified. If battery supply problems persist, Nissan could approach a critical US launch with limited inventory, weakening the popularity of its most important model and slowing its market comeback, which depends on the success of this crossover, the publication notes.
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