Toyota Motor Corp. announced Friday it  plans to transfer some its parts manufacturing operations to its main supplier, Denso Corp., to compete more effectively inn new vehicle technologies.

The company  is shedding some of its in-house parts production as it looks to develop new technologies including electric cars, self-driving vehicles, ride-sharing and other mobility services, writes Naomi Tajitsu at reuters.com.

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Friday’s announcement is the latest move by Toyota, which sells 10 million vehicles each year, to streamline its operations as it faces fierce competition from rivals including Volkswagen AG and also from technology companies such as Google which are moving into the automotive space.

“By consolidating mass-production development and production of electronic components of both Toyota and Denso within Denso … Toyota and Denso aim to establish a speedy and competitive development and production structure,” Toyota said.

Denso, which manufacturers components ranging from air conditioning systems to semiconductors, already counts Toyota as its biggest customer, accounting for nearly half of its annual sales.

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