The strategy comes as auto giants Volkswagen AG and Toyota Motor Corp are also aiming to mass-produce battery electric vehicles amid tightening emissions and fuel-economy regulations around the world.
According to Reuters, Franco-Japanese alliance partners Renault and Nissan have been among the most vocal proponents of the zero-emission technology but have struggled to lower costs enough as they developed their electric cars separately.
The three companies will share key components such as the motor, inverter and battery, a move that would lower the Leaf's price by about a fifth, the paper said, without citing its sources.