Nissan confirmed on Thursday it will acquire 34 percent of Mitsubishi in a deal worth 237 billion yen (approximately $2.17 billion).

The deal, which still requires shareholder approval, will make Nissan the single largest shareholder in Mitsubishi and provide it with control of the company.

Although Mitsubishi has enjoyed a slight blip in sales in the United States over the past year, the company is stuck with an aging lineup and is now also embroiled in its own emissions cheating scandal.

READ: Tesla deadlines aren't meant to be met, Musk says: they just pressure employees

Nissan, which has worked closely with Mitsubishi for the past five years, sees an opportunity to boost Mitsubishi’s performance through various synergies.

Recall, Nissan, through its existing relationships with Renault, Daimler and Russia’s AvtoVaz, has plenty of experience deriving synergies from partnerships.

In a press release, Nissan mentioned opportunities in purchasing, platform sharing, shared research and development, and shared plants.

2014 Mitsubishi MiEV Evolution III

2014 Mitsubishi MiEV Evolution III

What’s interesting is that both Mitsubishi and Nissan are strong proponents of electric cars. Mitsubishi was one of the first to offer a volume electric car with its original i-MiEV and more recently has been testing high-performance electric powertrain technology with a series of Pikes Peak International Hill Climb racers

Mitsubishi also has a plug-in hybrid in its lineup in the form of the Outlander Plug-In Hybrid.

Nissan, meanwhile, is readying its next-generation Leaf and was recently reported to be looking at electric SUVs and sports cars.

_______________________________________

Follow GreenCarReports on Facebook and Twitter.