After years of being apart from each other, Renault And Nissan They are reportedly discussing increased collaboration and new model development programs.
Multiple sources have reported this Financial Times The two automakers are in talks to strengthen their alliance, which has steadily weakened since the 2018 arrest of Carlos Ghosn, then Nissan’s chairman and Renault CEO.
The shift in sentiment reportedly came after both automakers replaced their chief executives earlier this year. Ivan Espinosa succeeded Makoto Uchida in April after Nissan’s planned marriage to Honda collapsed and the extent of Nissan’s financial problems became clear.
In August, François Provost took over as head of Renault after Luca de Meo suddenly resigned to become CEO of Kering, a luxury brand group that includes Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent and Balenciaga, among others.
Both Uchida-san and Mr. de Meo were happy to see the automakers go their own ways and significantly loosened the alliance structure in which they had worked closely together since around the turn of the millennium.
Before becoming CEO of Renault, Mr. Provost was its head of international development and partnerships and helped establish a wide-ranging partnership with Geely, where Renault South Korea manufactures redesigned Geely Group vehicles and jointly develops and produces internal combustion engines.
A Renault spokesman told the business newspaper that Mr. Provost and Mr. Espinosa regularly discussed how their companies could support each other.
Nissan said that Financial Times “The alliance is an important pillar of our business,” and the two automakers are working on “several high-value strategic projects.”
An unnamed source involved in the discussions went even further, saying that more projects will be announced in the not too distant future.
A senior Nissan insider claimed the two companies have no plans to increase their financial stakes in each other, but “there are many ways we could continue to work together.”
The Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance currently works mainly through joint model projects. For example, the Micra EV is essentially a redesigned Renault 5 E-Tech, and a host of Renaults are offered for sale in Europe as Mitsubishis, with the latest Renault Captur-based ASX even making its way Down Under.
According to the teasers, the upcoming Nissan Navara appears to be a slightly redesigned Mitsubishi Triton, while in Europe there will be a Nissan version of the recently launched Renault Twingo E-Tech. In addition, Nissan uses Renault’s production facilities in Latin America and India.
Previously, the alliance had a common board, a common purchasing department and developed common platforms that could be used by all brands.
At the peak of the alliance, Renault held a 43 percent stake in Nissan and the right to appoint senior board members. In return, Nissan owned a non-voting stake of 15 percent in Renault and a majority stake of 33 percent in Mitsubishi.
Since an agreement in 2023 to “realign” the relationship, Renault has agreed to transfer the majority of its Nissan shares into a trust fund, eventually sell its Nissan stake to 15 percent and voluntarily limit its influence in the Japanese automaker.
So far the company has only reduced its stake to 36 percent, with Mr de Meo reportedly waiting for higher offers before Nissan’s financial crisis.
MORE: Discover the Renault showroom | Nissan showroom
