Report: France aims to integrate Renault, Nissan

This article is more than 12 months old

Jan 21, 2019 06:00 am

TOKYO: A French government delegation has informed Tokyo that it would seek an integration of Renault and Nissan, most likely under the umbrella of a single holding company, the Nikkei reported yesterday.

The delegation, which included French government-designated Renault director Martin Vial, also said it wanted to name Nissan's next chairman, according to the report.

Nissan's former chairman Carlos Ghosn, arrested and detained in Tokyo since Nov 19, has been indicted in Japan on charges of under-reporting his salary for eight years through last March and temporarily transferring personal investment losses to Nissan during the global financial crisis. Ghosn has denied all charges.

The French government has requested that Renault hold a board meeting to replace Ghosn.

Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said in a newspaper interview published yesterday that Michelin chief executive Jean-Dominique Senard could be a good choice to head Renault.

"The French state, as shareholder, will have its say. What I can tell you is that Jean-Dominique Senard has a renowned competence with regards to the automobile industry," Mr Le Maire told France's Le Journal du Dimanche. - REUTERS