THE next Nissan Micra will be an all-electric model produced by Renault in France for European markets on an all-new electric vehicle platform which will be used across the Renault-Nissan Alliance.

Planned to be manufactured at Renault's ElectriCity centre in France, the new car will succeed the iconic Nissan Micra as the entry-level model in the Nissan line-up and is expected to be launched in 2024. Whether or not it will retain the Micra badge remains unclear.

According to Nissan chief operating officer Ashwani Gupta: "This all-new model will be designed by Nissan and engineered and manufactured by Renault using our new common platform, maximizing the use of our Alliance assets while maintaining its Nissan-ness.".

"This is a great example of the Alliance's ‘smart differentiation' approach. Succeeding our iconic Micra, I am sure this new model will provide further excitement to our customers in Europe," he adds.

The announcement of Nissan's future compact EV comes as part of Alliance 2030, a common roadmap announced by Renault, Nissan & Mitsubishi Motors that focuses on EVs and connected mobility activities.

The fact that it is to be produced in France means that there will also be a new Renault compact EV built on the same platform - industry speculation is that it will see the return of the Renault 5 model designation.

Nissan says that the new platform - dubbed CMF B-EV - enables the companies to maintain unique styling for their respective products.

The new Micra EV adds to the portfolio of Nissan vehicles manufactured by Renault in France, which include Nissan's range of LCVs, notably the new Nissan Townstar, which is succeeding the e-NV200 as Nissan's small electric van.