--- description: Nissan is projecting an acceleration in electric-auto sales as worldwide emissions standards tighten title: Nissan Sees Electric-Car Sales Boom image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc94bef5b1a7718d1/698685adf983e7b1ec04cc4a/ap1012030928.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Automotives](/tag/automotives/) ## Automotives Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Nissan Sees Electric-Car Sales Boom by [Sam Frizell](/author/sam-frizell/) ## Sam Frizell Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 16, 2014 3:45 PM CUT  Leaf, Nissan Motor Co.'s zero-emission electric car, is unveiled during a news conference at the company's headquarters in Yokohama, Japan, Friday, Dec. 3, 2010\. (AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye) Leaf, Nissan Motor Co.'s zero-emission electric car, is unveiled during a news conference at the company's headquarters in Yokohama, Japan, Friday, Dec. 3, 2010\. (AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye)Itsuo Inouye—AP by [Sam Frizell](/author/sam-frizell/) ## Sam Frizell Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 16, 2014 3:45 PM CUT The market for electric cars is [shifting](http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303546204579440652848502402?mod=WSJ%5Fhp%5FLEFTWhatsNewsCollection&mg=reno64-wsj "undefined") into high gear. Or at least that’s what the automaker Nissan says. The Japanese electric-car maker said Saturday it may be able to sell more gas-free vehicles than it initially projected, as more and more countries embrace fossil-fuel alternatives, the _Wall Street Journal_ reports. Nissan has sold more than 100,000 units of its electric Leaf worldwide since its launch in 2010\. Nissan will begin selling the Leaf in South Korea in the second half of this year and expects to sell 1.5 million units of electric vehicles by 2020 as the company looks to emerging markets. Despite having to overcome challenges like shorter range than gas-engine cars, relatively high prices and a minimal refueling infrastructure, tougher emissions standards worldwide will help spur the growth of the electric-car market, Nissan says. \[[_WSJ_](http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303546204579440652848502402?mod=WSJ%5Fhp%5FLEFTWhatsNewsCollection&mg=reno64-wsj "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/26506/nissan-sees-electric-car-sales-boom/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/26506/nissan-sees-electric-car-sales-boom/"},"headline":"Nissan Sees Electric-Car Sales Boom","datePublished":"2014-03-16T15:45:16.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T06:47:37.595Z","description":"The Japanese car manufacturer, which has sold more than 100,000 units of its electric Leaf since its 2010 launch, says it may be able to sell more gas-free vehicles than it initially projected as more and countries embrace fossil-fuel alternatives","url":"https://time.com/26506/nissan-sees-electric-car-sales-boom/","keywords":["Automotives","Nissan","Auto"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc94bef5b1a7718d1/698685adf983e7b1ec04cc4a/ap1012030928.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Sam Frizell","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/sam-frizell/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc94bef5b1a7718d1/698685adf983e7b1ec04cc4a/ap1012030928.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Japan Nissan","caption":"Japan Nissan","creditText":"Itsuo Inouye—AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/automotives/","name":"Automotives"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/26506/nissan-sees-electric-car-sales-boom/","name":"Nissan Sees Electric-Car Sales Boom"}}]}] ```