Nissan Energy: Electrifying Society and Your Life Electric Vehicles are Doing More Than You Thought Possible

We started the electric vehicle revolution 10 years ago with the Nissan LEAF, the first mass-market EV, selling over 500,000 units, logging over 10 billion collective miles, and saving over 2.5 million tons of CO2 to date. As we mark this anniversary, we're not just celebrating, we're thinking bigger – far beyond cars rolling off the assembly line.

Nissan is investing in initiatives that use EV technologies to affect nearly every part of your life from home to work to play, making your community and the world smarter, more efficient, and closer to being carbon-neutral.

More than just provide personal transportation, Nissan EVs can power your city, bring sustainable battery power to the furthest reaches of the world, and even deliver aid in disaster zones with 100% electric emergency vehicles. Let’s take a look at some of our current projects addressing the environment, energy management, disaster relief, and sustainable lifestyles.

Smarter Energy Use Comes Home

Your home can power your EV, but have you ever thought about your EV powering your home? As the world continues to move towards clean, sustainable power, Nissan is already embracing new technology, accelerating its adoption globally. You can see it in Nissan’s Vehicle-to-Home technology. Where once you would just charge your Nissan EV with your home electrical supply, now your Nissan EV can send back power to a home powerbank – a large battery that can collect electricity from solar panels and other sources. This translates into cheaper home electricity during the day, while your EV recharges itself later at night when usage is lower.

A Second Life for LEAF Batteries – Powering the Grid

How do you get more miles out of your LEAF battery after they leave the road? Put them to work. Following the 2011 tsunami, Nissan is helping the city of Namie recover, choosing it as the location of Japan’s first factory dedicated solely to the reuse and recycling of lithium-ion EV batteries. Not only does the factory bring back jobs to the city, it also provides a proof-of-concept, reusing Nissan LEAF batteries to power the entire city’s streetlights, keeping its residents out of the dark, nightly. Discover more about the Reborn Project here. 

A similar project is currently used in Amsterdam’s Johan Cruyff ArenA which takes electricity from solar panels on the roof and stores it in used Nissan LEAF batteries to power the 55,000-seat stadium. The used batteries also put power back into the local grid, extending their life cycle and preventing them from ending up in landfills or becoming industrial waste.

Supporting Vulnerable Communities

Providing power gives back in more than one way, too. The Filadelfia School in South Africa boards over 400 disabled students that otherwise might not receive an education tailored to their needs. Located in a rural part of the country, the school often faced power outages from their overtaxed local grid. The solution to this problem is used second-life batteries from Nissan LEAF vehicles and solar panels. Now the school is able to maintain continuous power where once it faced several outages every month, allowing for better instruction to children in serious need. It’s part of Nissan’s commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, which seek to bring reliable power to places that have been traditionally underserviced.

Reliable in Emergencies and Disasters

In emergencies where local power grids may be knocked out, Nissan is also making relief efforts easier. In Europe, the Re-LEAF emergency vehicle concept is being put to the test for future disaster relief efforts. More than just a massive powerbank that can be drawn from, the Re-LEAF is designed and equipped for challenging situations. It’s been engineered to navigate debris-covered roads and features weatherproof plug sockets with enough power behind them to power lights, heating, communications, and medical equipment.

EV-Powered Recreation

What could the future of recreation look like? A typical night at the movies might be more different than you’d expect. Your EV won’t just take you to the theatre, it might even help power the screening as well. As part of the Japan French Film Festival, Nissan sponsored a drive-in theater for LEAF owners. Using vehicle-to-load technology, Nissan helped provide light and sound for the event. LEAF owners enjoyed the perk of turning their EV into a personal screening room to share with their loved ones. They could even keep it cozy by running their climate control — without the noise of an idling gas engine or worrying about tailpipe emissions. It’s just another way Nissan EV technology proves its adaptability in a variety of circumstances.

Working Smarter and More Sustainably

Nissan EV technology can even let you lead a more sustainable work life. Built with small businesses in mind, the 100% electric e-NV200 work van helps entrepreneurs around the world lower their carbon footprint. From deliveries to services and more, businesses are thriving without a single tailpipe emission.

With over a decade of EV expertise and outside-of-the-box thinking, we are moving to change society as we know it. As the world rises to meet new challenges, Nissan is ready to help lead the way. Your EV will do more than get you from point A to point B, it’ll power your home, your city, change the way you work and travel, and it’ll even help to save lives. We helped start the electric revolution; now we're taking an exciting new step towards a sustainable society.