http://business.theage.com.au/business/nis...90805-e8rh.html

An alliance between carmakers Nissan and Renault said on Tuesday it had reached an agreement with the Victorian Government to promote the use of electric cars.
The companies said in a press release they had signed a preliminary accord to "identify potential areas of cooperation" for electric vehicles.
Nissan Australia chief executive Dan Thompson said in the release that his company hopes to sell a "battery-powered family sized car" in the country by 2012.
Nissan Motor Co and Renault SA, which have had an alliance since 1999, have fallen behind other companies in gas-electric hybrid technologies and are looking to take the lead in purely electric, or zero-emission, vehicles.
The alliance has partnered with local governments in the US, Europe and Asia to promote the cars.
Nissan, Japan's No.3 carmaker, showed an electric hatchback called the Leaf to reporters in Japan earlier this week.
The company said the car will cost about the same as petrol-powered models and have a range of 160 kilometres on a single charge.
General Motors, Ford and other carmakers are also planning electric vehicles in the near future.
Governments in the US, Europe and Japan are offering or planning tax breaks and other incentives for environmentally friendly vehicles.