Renault And Nissan Have Struck A New Partnership Deal

Nissan and Renault have finally come to an agreement on the grounds of the companies' future partnership, subject to the approval of each company's board of directors. The partnership, which can trace its roots back to 1999, is set to continue until 2030 and thanks to this agreement, will continue the meaningful relationship the two companies have shared for years.

This decision has come after months of speculation about what changes the agreement would bring, or if the companies would stay together at all. The major issue so far has been that Nissan has wanted to make sure its proprietary technology was kept safe since Renault has a deal with Chinese automaker Geely. Nissan has been investing a ton of money into electric vehicles like the Ariya, and the last thing it wants is for that tech to reach competitors.

The first change of the reborn alliance will be a refocusing of the partnership on high-value projects. These projects will be focused on Latin America, India, and Europe, and will consist of market, vehicle, and technology projects. On top of this, the automakers want more initiatives that each company can join.

The first is that Nissan will invest in Ampere, the EV and software company that Renault founded, to become a strategic shareholder. Just last year, the companies announced they are investing $26 billion into electric technology with plans to build 30 new electric vehicles, and this seems to be a stepping stone towards that goal.

The rest of the deal will focus on the important restructuring of shares. Renault and Nissan will retain a 15% cross-shareholding, with a lock-up obligation and standstill obligation, which means deferring from selling shares for a period of time and a "standstill" period protecting the companies from a takeover. Both companies will then be allowed to exercise the voting rights capped at that 15% freely.