Nissan Motor Co on Friday announced its plans to launch the all electric vehicle Nissan Leaf in Japan on December 20. The hatchback will be launched in the US by month end, the auto giant said.

The Leaf, which stands for Leading, Environmentally friendly, Affordable, Family car, is a 5-door hatchback electric car made in United States, with a mileage rating of 99 miles per gallon (mpg). The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has dubbed the electric car best for fuel efficiency and the environment.

The car has already sold out for this fiscal year in Japan at 6,000 orders and in the U.S. at 20,000, reaching production limits.

Nissan said prices would start at 3.76 million yen (45,000 dollars), but the actual price customers would have to pay will start at 2.98 million yen as the environmentally friendly car will be eligible for subsidies. These subsidies are applicable only until the end of Japan's fiscal year, which falls on March 31. The government is yet to announce its incentive policy beyond that date.

Nissan said it has installed charging equipment at all its 2,200 domestic dealers in Japan, so as to enable the drivers to charge the car when the battery runs low.

According to a recent report from Bloomberg New Energy Finance, plug-in electric vehicles, including plug-in hybrids and battery electric vehicles, have the potential to make up 9 percent of auto sales in 2020 and 22 percent in 2030 (1.6 million and 4 million vehicle sales respectively).

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