An electric car battery plant planned by China's Envision AESC in northern France, described as a boost to an auto industry in upheaval as some traditional jobs have been lost, will create at least 1,000 new job positions, a French politician said on Friday.

Carmakers globally are racing to keep ahead of rivals in producing cleaner vehicles, a technology shift that will prompt Germany's Volkswagen for example to build six battery cell plants of its own in Europe.

Xavier Bertrand, from the opposition Les Republicains party and who is running for re-election as head of France's Hauts-de-France region, confirmed Envision's investment in the French factory, AFP reported.

Two sources close to the matter told Reuters this week that Renault had picked Envision to make batteries for its future electric vehicles, including the Renault 5 model.

The investment and details on jobs were expected to be confirmed on Monday by President Emmanuel Macron, the sources said.

France is trying to push its national champions to produce batteries for cars, though politicians have welcomed the Chinese investment.

Europe has started to build up its capacity to produce batteries on the continent. It projects to build 38 gigafactories with a combined annual output of 1,000 gigawatt-hours (GWh) at an estimated cost of 40 billion euros ($48 billion), according to a June report by Transport & Environment, a non-government organization.

(With input from Reuters, AFP)