French automaker Renault and Japanese partner Nissan have reached an agreement to reshape their more than two-decade-old alliance. As previously announced, Renault will eventually reduce its interest in Nissan.
This ends the skewed ownership relationship that has been a source of friction between the two companies in recent years.
The new pact was reached after months of tough negotiations and was approved by the boards of directors of Renault and Nissan on Monday. As part of the new deal, Renault will reduce its stake in Nissan from more than 43 percent to 15 percent, which is equivalent to Nissan’s stake in Renault. It bothered the Japanese that the French had a larger interest in the company, while Nissan sells more cars than Renault.
Nissan will also take up to 15 percent stake in Renault’s electric car business. The French car manufacturer wants to separate the part that makes electric vehicles from the branch that focuses on cars with petrol and diesel engines and market it separately under Ampere. The smaller cooperation partner Mitsubishi will also invest in Ampere. The agreement also includes the development and production of several new models worldwide.
The partners also agreed to continue working together on various industrial projects. Those projects could produce hundreds of millions of euros or even billions “if things go very well,” said Renault CEO Luca de Meo at a press conference in London. “The relevance of these projects has so far been underestimated.”
The agreement is intended to reinvigorate the nearly 24-year partnership between Renault and Nissan that nearly collapsed following the demise of its former leader Carlos Ghosn, accused of fraud, in 2018. The new alliance will be for an initial period of fifteen years. A final agreement will be reached by the end of the first quarter, and the deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter.