Renault finalising transfer of 28% stake in Nissan: Sources
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Renault plans to use proceeds from Nissan stake sales to continue investing in its electric vehicle and software business Ampere, sports car division Alpine and its recycling unit.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
Renault and Nissan Motor are close to completing a landmark deal to rebalance their 24-year alliance, according to people familiar with the matter.
The automakers are expected to announce the creation of a trust to which Renault would transfer 28 per cent of Nissan shares as soon as Wednesday, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing non-public information.
The companies first disclosed plans for the trust in January.
Renault managers in recent weeks have reiterated that staff should no longer share information with their Nissan counterparts, the people said, after the French carmaker announced in September that aspects of the alliance would be unwound by the end of 2023.
Taken together with the deal to equalise their cross-shareholdings at 15 per cent, the developments are the clearest indications yet that members of one of the world’s biggest automotive tie-ups are increasingly going their separate ways.
A Renault representative said a deal to rebalance the companies’ cross-shareholdings is still on track to be completed before the end of 2023 and declined to comment further.
A Nissan spokesperson declined to comment.
Renault told employees in September it was moving away from common structures with Nissan in favour of a new, project-by-project approach to working together.
The dissolution of the companies’ joint purchasing organisation means the two will no longer pool information on a regular basis due to antitrust concerns.
The selldown of shares held by the trustee will be coordinated with Nissan, which will have the right of first offer to purchase the stock, Renault chief financial officer Thierry Pieton told analysts during a quarterly call in October.
The company has said the trust will have no obligation to sell the shares within a specific or predetermined period of time.
Renault plans to use proceeds from Nissan stake sales to continue investing in its electric vehicle and software business Ampere, its sports car division Alpine and its recycling unit.
“For us, it’s a question of allocating the capital to things that are going to provide a better return on investment compared with what we’re getting or what we’re expecting to get from Nissan,” Mr Pieton said. BLOOMBERG
