Abu Dhabi: On Monday the CEO and president of Nissan and Renault said in Abu Dhabi that electric car can be successful in oil rich nations such as Gulf countries but it requires government help.

Carlos Ghosn said that, I think it can be successful in oil rich nations, “it will depend on how much initial support the specific government would give.” “The electric car will be successful in the United States and in Japan and in Europe because governments have decided to support the consumer in order to jumpstart the sales,” Ghosn told reporters in Abu Dhabi.

Various European countries including Japan, United States and other offer incentives to develop zero emission and low priced cars for customers. Ghosn said that the support is such a key.

Ghosn said that, “If the US government was saying, ‘look, I’m not going to give any incentive for electric cars,’ I don’t think we would” launch electric cars there”.

Later  this year Nissan will launch its first electric car, which have more than 100 miles range on a single charge, its top speed would be more than 90 miles per hour and it powered with lithium battery.

Renault and Nissan have no plan to enlarge their production capability in Middle East, Renault‘s factory is under construction in Morocco and Nissan has factory in Egypt.

he said that, “As long as you don’t have a free trade or at least an effective free trade in the Mideast, it’s going to be very difficult to go and make an investment of a large capacity if you can’t sell in a seamless way in the Arab countries”.

“Free trade in the Arab world would be “an incentive for carmakers to establish capacity in the Mideast, there is no doubt about the fact that 2010 will end up being the highest year in terms of total global car sales,” he said.