Tokyo  - Nissan of Japan is planning to start mass-production of electric vehicles by the end of next year with a widescale sales campaign kicking off in the business year starting 2012, Nissan's CEO Carlos Ghosn has announced.

The first E-vehicle would be presented in August 2010 at the opening of the new company headquarters in Yokohama. Initially production of 50,000 vehicles are planned in the factory of Oppama, south of Tokyo.

Nissan has not released any details of the car and there is speculation it may be unveiled at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September this year. However, Ghosn said the car would be offered at a "reasonable price" and that he was confident there was a big market for selling electric vehicles.

The prototype of a Nissan Nuvu E-vehicle was unveiled at the Paris Motor Show last year, measuring only three metres in length. It was said to have a top speed of 120 km/h with a range of 120 kilometres on a single electric charge of the lithium-ion battery unit. (dpa)