Renault SA, Nissan Motor outline $26-billion electric vehicle plan

The funds will be spent over five years to roll out 35 new battery-powered cars

Renault SA and Nissan Motor  outlined a 23 billion euro ($26 billion) electrification plan that will deepen ties within the struggling Franco-Japanese alliance as competition intensifies.

The funds, announced separately by the carmakers last year, will be spent over five years to roll out 35 new battery-powered cars by the end of the decade across five common manufacturing platforms, the companies said Thursday. The move is a major departure from the Renault Zoe and Nissan Leaf electric cars that were developed and built separately.

The plans mark a step forward in the three-way alliance that also includes Mitsubishi Motors that’s still seeking to rebuild itself after nearly falling apart following the downfall of former leader Carlos Ghosn. After Renault and Nissan blazed an early EV trail with their best-selling Zoe and Leaf models, competition is heating up and the vehicles have since been leapfrogged by Tesla Inc. and Volkswagen AG.

“Three years ago the alliance was experiencing a crisis unprecedented in its history based on a lack of trust,” Renault Chairman Jean-Dominique Senard said during a presentation. “This period belongs to the past.”