Nissan plans to slash the cost of manufacturing its electric vehicles by 30 per cent as the Japanese carmaker turns to new partnerships and manufacturing methods to counter the rising threat from Chinese rivals.
Nissan, which has an alliance with France’s Renault and a partnership with Honda that was announced last week, has wrestled with flagging sales in China as the automotive industry struggles to build profitable battery-powered vehicles at affordable prices.
Following months of delay, Nissan released a business plan on Monday addressing how a carmaker of its size — with annual sales of fewer than 4mn vehicles — would finance the costs of new technology development and survive the transition to electric cars. The strategy aims to lift annual sales by 1mn units by the end of its fiscal 2026 year.