NISSAN Motor said yesterday it would sell China-developed electric vehicles (EVs) globally as it struck a deal with one of the country’s top universities to leverage local resources to accelerate research and development on electrification.

The Japanese automaker is considering exporting the line-up of existing internal combustion engine vehicles and upcoming pure electric and plug-in hybrid cars manufactured and developed in China to overseas markets, Masashi Matsuyama, vice president of Nissan Motor and president of Nissan China, said in Beijing.

Nissan is considering aiming at the same markets as Chinese rivals such as BYD Co., he said.

The company is joining foreign brands including Tesla, BMW and Ford that are expanding their exports of China-made cars to exploit the country’s lower manufacturing costs and increase the capacity utilization of their factories.

China accounted for just over a fifth of Nissan’s worldwide sales of about 2.8 million vehicles over the first 10 months of the year, down from over a third for the same period last year.

Japanese automakers have faced a severe sales challenge this year in China, the world’s biggest auto market, due to the popularity of domestic brands and heavy price competition amid a rapid shift to EVs.

Nissan announced it would establish a joint research center with Tsinghua University next year, focusing on research and development of EVs, including charging infrastructure and battery recycling. (SD-Agencies)