GENEVA - Renault-Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn said Wednesday that Nissan would launch an electric car in the United States in 2010, which would be introduced to the global market by both brands two years later.

"Nissan is working on an electric vehicle which will be launched in the US in 2010," Ghosn told journalists on the sidelines of the Geneva Auto Show.

He said new legislation in California aimed at cutting CO2 emissions gave extra impetus to research into alternative energy sources and products.

Renault and Nissan will work together on electric technology, but with "different applications as the car will not be identical" under the two different brands, Ghosn said.

"We will target different markets according to the brands," with Europe a priority for Renault while Nissan will focus on Japan and China, he said.