Blog of RENAULT NISSAN Alliance

With the 2012 World Economic Forum now in full swing, life in Davos has stepped up a pace. Some 2,600 top business leaders and politicians will visit, including Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel, who opened Forum proceedings.

Others expected include more than 40 heads of state and 19 of the world’s most influential bankers (not to mention celebs like Mick Jagger), so it’s little wonder that security in this tiny mountaintop town is tight.

But that doesn’t prevent many of the delegates walking freely around, dropping in the Hub Pavilion for a chat with old friends or meeting new associates. And, of course, they can all enjoy a cup of warming hot cocoa courtesy Nissan LEAF.

The fashion police would have a field-day here. It's a business event so suits rather than ski-gear is worn, but the practicalities of moving around on the snow and ice mean sensible shoes are nowhere to be seen and mountain boots are the order of the day. It’s an odd-looking mix!

The Renault-Nissan Alliance team has been busy catching up with some of the visitors to the Pavilion and have recorded their thoughts on a variety of different topics.

David Kirkpatrick, a technology writer and conference organiser, took time out to have a spin in the Nissan LEAF, his first time behind the wheel of an electric vehicle. See his verdict here.

We caught up with a young British entrepreneur, Laurence Kemball-Cook, the powerhouse behind Pavegen (www.pavegen.com) which has taken a stunningly simple idea and developed it into technology that generates electrical energy from footsteps.

Pavegen and Nike have teamed up to electrify the floor of the Pavilion. Every visitor walking over the Nike Grind flooring – made from recycled sports shoes – is generating kinetic energy which is then captured by the Pavegen system and used to drive the Hub’s night time LED display. See the article here.

And we also spoke to Alliance Communications Director Rachel Konrad who revealed a couple of little known facts about electric vehicles and why they are just perfect for snowy mountain passes. More to come on this tomorrow…

Day 2 also brought a significant news story from Nissan. As night fell, the world’s Press decamped to the Mexico Pavilion set up in one of the Davos hotels to hear President and CEO Carlos Ghosn announce a US $2bn investment in a new manufacturing facility in Aguascalientes, bringing to three the number of Nissan plants in Mexico. See the Press Release here.

And so, Day 2 at Davos draws to a close. Don’t forget to come back tomorrow and see what the Alliance team gets up to on Day 3 of this extraordinary event.