If Nissan had its way, the London 2012 Olympics would have been teaming with electric vehicles. The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) had chosen BMW to supply more than 4,000 vehicles for the games, only a small fraction of which will be electric.

Nissan criticizes the London 2012 organizing committee for this move, saying that London missed out on a prime opportunity to build confidence in electric vehicles in the UK. In an interview with Autocar, LOCOG expressed doubts that the city would have a suitable electric infrastructure in place in time for the games. A Nissan spokesman confirmed that the Renault-Nissan Alliance also made a bid for the Olympics but lost out due to “financial grounds.” The spokesman said that Nissan had planned for more than half of its fleet to be made up of all-electric Nissan Leafs.

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BMW AG will be highly visible in the London Olympics as it is the latest Tier One partner signed up by the 2012 organizing committee (LOCOG). Under the deal, BMW will provide about 30 million pounds ($50.50 million) to LOCOG, mostly in the form of services.

BMW is set to supply 4,000 vehicles to transport athletes, officials and media during the Games and the Paralympics. In a statement, LOCOG chairman Sebastian Coe expressed his delight at having BMW on board. He said that having an automotive partner is “vital for any organizing committee.” Referring to BMW, Coe added that the carmaker shares its vision to stage sustainable games in 2012 and as such, will be a valued partner. He says that on a commercial level, having another Tier One Partner is a “fantastic achievement” that illustrates the inspirational power of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games.

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