French automotive executive Carlos Ghosn told reporters attending a product review in Portugal today that automakers Renault and Nissan are talking with a Gulf region country abut participating in a bold electric car project that already has been adopted by Israel.

"We are negotiating to launch an electric car with a Gulf state," Ghosn told a news conference in the coastal resort of Cascais, near Lisbon.

Renault and Nissan, which have operated as an alliance since the French company took control of the Japanese automaker in 1999, plan to put an electric-powered car on the road by 2010.

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Nissan Motor Co., which has come late to the hybrid game, doesn't want to be caught unplugged when electric cars start hitting the market, says company boss Carlos Ghosn.

An electric Nissan will be introduced in the U.S. in 2010, he told reporters Wednesday during an impromptu discussion at the Geneva Motor Show, with a global launch of the vehicle to follow in 2012.

Ghosn, who chairs both Nissan and its French partner, Renault,  said the electric car would be sold worldwide by both brands. He did not elaborate on brand distinctions, model variances or particulars of the electric drive system being prepared, but did say the cars would not be identical.

Renault would target the European market, Ghosn said, while Nissan would target Asia and  the U.S.

Ghosn said that California's 2004 law aimed at reducing automotive carbon-dioxide emissions has spurred Nissan and Renault engineers' joint research  into alternative energy sources such as electric drive.

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French automaker Renault and Japan's Nissan have confirmed that they are teaming with California-based Project Better Place and the state of Israel to develop a new electric car and a related battery recharging infrastructure.

The cars and battery stations will be launched in Israel in 2011, the companies said, and ultimately will be made available globally.

Green Car Advisor reported Friday on the then-pending deal, and Edmunds AutoObserver provides some fresh details today, so jump on over and take a look.

Renault and Nissan Motor Co. are expected to announce Monday a joint venture to build and test electric cars, using Israel as the first test site and a California entrepreneur's vision for a battery exchange network as the catalyst to make it all work.

The automakers, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal, are teaming with California entrepreneur Shai Agassi (right), who last year began a venture aimed at establishing a global network of battery charging and replacement centers to facilitate electric car use.                                                           

Edmunds.com first reported on Agassi's talks with Israel almost two months ago.

In a recent interview with Green Car Advisor, Agassi said his "Project Better Place" would solve the nagging problem of how to keep electric vehicles running after the initial battery charge is depleted – how to make them cars that can be used every day by all kinds of drivers, for long trips as well as short commutes.

The system envisioned by Agassi – former product division president at business software giant SAP -- works much like a conventional fueling system in which people buy cars from automakers  and get their gasoline or diesel fuel as they need it from  filling stations affiliated with various energy companies.

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