Renault-Nissan announce Chinese EV joint venture

A little over a week after Ford announced the signing of an agreement with a major Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer, the Renault-Nissan Alliance has signed a new joint venture to co-develop and sell EVs in China. The Renault-Nissan Alliance and Dongfeng Motor Group Co., Ltd. announced the new joint venture yesterday. Renault, Dongfeng and Nissan (China) Investment Co., Ltd. (Nissan) have signed an agreement to set up the new joint venture. Renault will hold 25 percent of eGT, Nissan will hold 25 percent and Dongfeng the remaining 50 percent. The new joint venture will be called eGT New Energy Automotive Co., Ltd. (eGT), and will focus on the core competencies of each partner to bring together the competencies of the Renault-Nissan Alliance and the resources of Dongfeng in the new energy industry, says Renault-Nissan. The company says this will help them meet the expectations of the Chinese market. “The establishment of the new joint venture with Dongfeng confirms our common commitment to develop competitive electric vehicles for the Chinese market,” said Carlos Ghosn, chairman and chief executive officer of the Renault-Nissan Alliance. “We are confident to meet the expectations of the Chinese customers and to strengthen our global electric vehicle leadership position.” According to the China Association of automobile manufacturers, China is the world’s largest battery EV market. The association said that in 2016, 256 879 battery EVs were sold in China, up 121 per cent from the previous year. In the first seven months of 2017, production of BEVs reached 223,000 units and sales 204,000 units, representing an increase of 37.8 per cent and 33.6 per cent respectively. “This project is the result of a joint effort to develop electric vehicles for the Chinese market, by the 'Golden Triangle' formed by Dongfeng, Renault and Nissan, with an innovative business model,” said Zhu Yanfeng, Chairman of Dongfeng. “We expect to meet the transformation trend of the market in China; where cars are becoming light, electric, intelligent, interconnected and shared. This is also testimony of a deepened and strengthened strategic cooperation between the three parties.”