Palmer: "Nissan was not just making a loss on Leaf -- it was not even covering material costs."
PRAGUE -- Nissan could have had a valuation similar to Tesla’s if it had stuck with its electrification program, former Nissan executive Andy Palmer said.
Palmer, now working with multiple electric startups, led the development of the Leaf, Nissan’s first full-electric car, which launched in 2011.
The compact hatchback was regarded as the world’s first mass-produced full-electric car. Nissan has since fallen behind competitors in the electric race.
“For one reason or another Nissan did not remain on the electric track,” Palmer told the Automotive News Europe Congress here on Thursday. "If they had, there was a very clear rollout plan for [electric] cars. If they had followed that they could have had a valuation not dissimilar to Tesla."
Nissan's actions were likely a response to the high cost of the Leaf, Palmer said.
Nissan likely rolled back its electric ambitions because concern over whether the future would be electric and when electric cars would become profitable, he said. "Closing down the electric strategy improved the profitability of the company," Palmer said.
One casualty of not pursuing EVs so strongly was a battery-electric car destined for Nissan’s premium brand, Infiniti. The model was shown as the LE Concept and based on the Leaf, Palmer said.
Palmer steered the development of the original Leaf during his time at Nissan as chief operating officer. He left the automaker in 2014.
The Leaf was developed to counter Toyota's success with its Prius gasoline-electric car, Palmer said. "Rather than following the hybrid direction we were following EV in terms of technology."
Nissan has since switched to Toyota’s track with hybrid drivetrains and is about to start deliveries of the Qashqai E-Power compact SUV.
The company’s is also taking orders for its delayed Aryria midsize electric SUV.
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The first Leaf was a big money loser for Nissan.
"Nissan was not just making a loss on Leaf -- it was not even covering material costs," Palmer said. "When we first started we were paying $1,000 per kilowatt hour. Now it’s more like $150."
Demand for the second-generation Nissan Leaf, which was once Europe's best-selling EV, has plummeted.
The car, which is built for European markets in Sunderland, England, was Europe’s 18th best-selling EV in the first five months with sales falling 16 percent to 11,021, figures from Dataforce show.
Nissan will replace the hatchback with a coupe-styled small crossover that is expected to outsell the Leaf by a factor of three, the automaker said last year.
The new model will be built in Sunderland and is expected in 2024.
