Confusion As Renault And Nissan Merger Talks Near Closure

Dec. 04, 2022 5:25 PM ET by Chase Bierenkoven Industry News / Comments

Just a day apart, sources inside the companies claim talks are heating up across the globe.

Just yesterday, CarBuzz reported on what appeared to be a somewhat concrete end to negotiations between Renault, Nissan, and Mitsubishi. The trio of brands have been struggling to reach a compromise on their partnership in the years since disgraced ex-boss Carlos Ghosn fled Japan.

Now, sources from inside the talks have told Bloomberg that another path has emerged. Originally, talks were to be held on December 7 in London. An announcement regarding the partnership was to be made by the end of the year. Now, Nissan CEO Makato Uchida has flown to France ahead of schedule for talks with the December 7 sit-down now reportedly dead.

Uchida is said to be attending a board meeting of the alliance this Tuesday, which will take place at Renault HQ- Boulogne-Billancourt. At the request of the sources, Bloomberg has not identified them. For that reason, it is unclear if these are the same sources who made claims about the December 7 talks in London. We suspect they may be.

These sources confirmed that these Paris talks will be held in lieu of the originally planned London meeting between the autos manufacturers. Renault is pushing for Nissan's investment in Ampere, its EV business, as Nissan works to flesh out its own electric lineup with models like the Ariya.

Reportedly, Nissan's stake in Ampere would total between $500 and $700 million in exchange for a 15% stake in the brand.

As previously reported, Nissan is insistent on more equal footing with Renault in the partnership. As of publishing, Renault owns a roughly 43% stake in Nissan, while Nissan does not even have voting privileges within Renault. The Japanese automaker wants that stake to gradually reduce to somewhere around 15% over an unspecified period of time.

On Thursday, Nissan's Uchida told Bloomberg that the brand is in talks "every day" with Renault, looking for ways to bring the alliance "to the next step" while becoming "stronger together."