BIZ BAHRAIN JAN-FEB 2018

Interview | Y.K Almoayyed & Sons
driving habits,” says Robert Beaty, General
Manager of Nissan and Infiniti Division at
Y.K. Almoayyed & Sons. “You tell this car
where to go and it goes! In any city that
has traffic congestion, this is certainly
going to make driving so much more
efficient and less stressful. While driving
we often make rash decisions based on
the frustrations we face on the road, but
the automated electric or hybrid car just
doesn’t. It is a total leap of faith driving
these cars because you are basically
entrusting yourself to the car.“
Nissan was the
first automotive
manufacturer to
introduce a massproduced,
affordable
electric car, known as
the Nissan Leaf, which
is the world’s all-time
best-selling highwaycapable
electric car in
history.
Most to its advantage, EVs and hybrid
vehicles use regenerative braking, which
utilizes the motor to convert the kinetic
energy during deceleration into electrical
energy. With energy regeneration, an
EV is able to run on less electricity
and a hybrid vehicle on less fuel. As
the second decade of modern electric
vehicle adoption for the masses arises,
Nissan identified the four key pillars
of its approach to the future in Oslo,
Norway earlier this year which includes
the new Nissan LEAF, with a special
“2.ZERO” version for Europe, as well as
a new Nissan e-NV200 van, which also
has a better battery that significantly
boosts the vehicle’s range. Nissan is also
expanding “Europe’s largest fast charger
infrastructure network” at the same time,
by 20%, with 1,000 more quick charger
installations just announced. That’s a
move from 4,600 quick chargers today to
5,600 over next 18 months.
Talking to Reena Abraham and Sultan
Sharabaty about his long journey in the
business, Robert Beaty reminisces about
the past, while the focus remains on
readying for a future that holds no bars to
innovation and commitment.
“I started out in the UK, in the body
shop working long hours,’” he recalls.
“When the agency then acquired the
Nissan business, I was moved there as
the Service Manager and at the age of just
24, I won the manufacturer’s award for
the Best Service Manager - the youngest
Manager to win this; and then I went on
to win it three years in a row! That was
pretty motivating for a young lad just
starting out in the business! I moved
within the industry several times but I
was fortunate each time to work with
some of the big automotive companies
so I was constantly learning and gaining
invaluable experience.”
“Ultimately, a business has to have
sustainability. It is nice to see what
Nissan in the GCC is achieving. It is all
about training and Nissan has ensured
that for a long time. Keeping up to date
is very important in this business, and
with technology constantly making
upgrades and improvements, it is
necessary for technicians and everyone
to keep their knowledge up to the mark
by achieving the necessary technical
assessment goals. At Y.K. Almoayyed
our outlook reflects that of the family
owning the business. The Almoayyeds
are passionate that we are the best in the
business and remain so.”
Tell us a little more about Nissan’s work
with EVs.
Nissan is one of the leading
automotive brands in electric vehicle
technology and sales. Nissan was
the first automotive manufacturer to
introduce a mass-produced, affordable
electric car, known as the Nissan Leaf,
which is the world’s all-time bestselling
highway-capable electric car
in history. The 2nd generation of the
Nissan Leaf has recently been launched
in Japan, which sets a new standard
in the growing market for mainstream
electric vehicles, by offering customers
greater range, advanced technologies
and a dynamic new design. Pursuing a
goal of zero-emission vehicles and zero
fatalities on the road, Nissan announced
its “Intelligent Mobility” vision last year,
which was created to guide the Nissan
product evolution. One of the core
areas of Nissan Intelligent Mobility is
Nissan Intelligent Power, which revolves
around more efficiency and more power,
spearheaded by electric vehicles.
Nissan believes that quiet, yet powerful,
acceleration with an increased range is
essential to ensure an incredible driving
experience. As part of the Renault-
Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance, which is a
strategic partnership between the three
automobile manufacturers, the Alliance
announced that the three companies
together would launch 12 new all-electric
vehicles globally by 2022.
Are EVs something that we will see in
Bahrain in the very near future?
As Nissan’s strategy is to strengthen
its EV leadership and expansion of EVs
globally, we look forward to introducing
an electric vehicle in the Kingdom of
Bahrain. However, before proceeding
forward, we need to ensure that the
market is equipped and the necessary
infrastructure has been set-up for
EV vehicles to ensure the customer
ownership experience is set up as
envisioned by Nissan.
In some countries with
vehicle-to-grid systems,
Nissan Leaf owners
can get incentives from
energy companies to
improve power grid
stability by absorbing
demand fluctuation.
What do connected cars mean for the
industry? When will we have such
vehicles in the region?
Besides Nissan Intelligent Power,
Nissan Intelligent Integration is another
core pillar of Nissan’s Intelligent Mobility
vision. In order to create new benefits
for the society and ensure traffic safety,
Nissan has developed a technology
which networks cars, individuals and
the social infrastructure. As part of
Nissan’s Intelligent Integration pillar,
we already offer Nissan Connect though
certain models within our line-up.
N-Connect combines navigation,
security, entertainment and ways to
stay in touch with a dash-mounted
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