Meeting all the specification necessary for London’s Hackney Carriages (spacious passenger area, turn ratios etc), the new all electric model is set to debut for testing in 2013.

The NV200 black cab is Nissan’s latest effort to lead the way in the electric and hybrid automotive market, and is miles greener than the black cabs on London’s streets today.

Also in line for release at a much earlier date is a diesel-powered version of the model, which Nissan claims that at 138g/km CO2 the vehicle will emit 34% less CO2/km than the TX4 – the most up to date version of The London Taxi Company’s black cab.

“Nissan will be testing a fully electric cab on the streets of London from 2013,” executive vice-president Andy Palmer said in a press statement in London yesterday. Nissan wants to roll out the vehicles on a huge scale by 2014. If this is achieved, it will look to spread both models to other cities around the UK.

One drawback is the lack of a concrete network of charging points – this is highlighted by cynics as one of the major flaws in Nissan’s plan. However, with ventures such as those being pioneered by green energy provider Ecotricity, such a network might not be as far away as some people think.