Renault-Nissan, Dongfeng enter JV to build electric vehicles in China

Johannes Eisele | AFP | Getty Images

Employees working on a car assembly line of France’s Renault and China’s Dongfeng factory in Wuhan, Hubei province, China on on February 1, 2016.

Nissan Motor and its alliance partner Renault SA said on Tuesday they are setting up a new joint venture with their partner Dongfeng Motor to design and build electric vehicles in China.

The move comes as global automakers tap into a boom for such cleaner “new energy” vehicles in the world’s biggest auto market and gear up to meet its stringent plug-in car quotas.

The new joint venture, called eGT New Energy Automotive Co, will be owned 25 percent each by Nissan and Renault and 50 percent by Dongfeng, according to a statement by Nissan and Renault.

Ford Motor announced earlier this it was exploring setting up a joint venture with Chinese car maker Anhui Zotye Automobile to build electric vehicles in China under a new brand.