Japan’s Nissan, Honda to partner on EVs to challenge Chinese, reports say

Japanese carmakers have struggled to keep up with their Chinese rivals in the fast-growing EV market.

Japan’s Nissan is seeking a business partnership with Honda on electric vehicles in a bid to challenge the dominance of Chinese manufacturers, media outlets have reported.

Nissan and Honda have yet to begin formal discussions on the tie-up, the scope of which is still undecided, Reuters reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Nikkei Asia reported on Thursday that the Nissan Motor Corporation was exploring the possibility of purchasing a common EV powertrain with the Honda Motor Company and developing a shared EV platform.

The Japanese carmakers have announced a joint news conference in Tokyo for 3:30pm on Friday without providing further details.

Nissan and Honda did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Both Nissan and Honda have struggled to keep up with their Chinese EV rivals in their home market, the world’s largest.

Nissan’s output in China last fell 24 percent to about 793,000 vehicles, dropping below the one million mark for the first time in more than a decade.

Honda has laid out plans to increase its ratio of electric vehicles and fuel cell vehicles to 100 percent of all sales by 2040.

Nissan already cooperates with France’s Renault on EVs, with its updated Micra to share the same architecture as the new Renault Five and be assembled in the same plant in Douai.

Chinese automakers account for more than 50 percent of the global market for EVs.