Wearside'S troubled Nissan car plant could switch to 24-hour production in a bid to safeguard its future.

The Japanese manufacturer is believed to be considering the move as part of a major cost-cutting overhaul at its flagship North-East factory.

The Sunderland plant, which employs 5,000 people, is battling against the strong pound and competition from Europe to land production of the new Micra small car, worth £200m.

The proposals could lead to Britain's first 24-hour assembly line, increasing production capacity to 500,000 cars a year.

Senior managers at Nissan believe the changes could make Sunderland the biggest manufacturing plant in Britain, and secure the lucrative Micra contract.

Workers currently operate on a two-shift assembly line and produce more than 330,000 cars each year.

The three-shift system is used by French car giants Renault, which owns a 36.8per cent share in Nissan.

Nissan has also introduced three-shift production at its plant in Barcelona, Spain, to meet demand for the new Tino car.

A spokeswoman for the company said it had yet to decide whether to build the new Micra in Sunderland or in central Europe.

But she admitted if the contract did come to Wearside, 24-hour production was a possibility.

The winner of the Micra order is expected to be announced at the end of the year.

Last month, Prime Minister Tony Blair met with company bosses to discuss the future of the Sunderland plant following continued speculation about its future.

Nissan has blamed the high value of the pound and Britain's exclusion from the European Single Currency for the current problems.

The firm is seeking up to £50m in Government aid to build the Micra in the North-East, which should safeguard jobs at the plant and ease worries at firms which supply Nissan from across the region.

Company president Carlos Ghosn made the request for cash support during high-level talks with Mr Blair at Downing Street.

If Nissan switches production of the Micra to the Continent, it could put 1,000 jobs at Sunderland in jeopardy