French car maker Renault plans to invest 300 million euros ($323.25 million) in its assembly plant located in Sandouville in northern France to make new-generation electric vans from 2026.

The company will add 550 staff to its 1,850 payroll at the plant over the next four years, it said in a statement.

The project to build a light van, designed in particular for last-mile delivery of parcels, is part of Renault's electric vehicle unit Flexis, a joint venture with Sweden's Volvo and French shipping and logistics giant CMA CGM.

In March, Renault and Volvo obtained the necessary regulatory approval to officially launch the joint venture in which CMA CGM Group has confirmed its interest to invest up to 120 million euros, Renault said.

($1 = 0.9281 euros) (Reporting by Gilles Guillaume and Inti Landauro, editing by Tassilo Hummel)