Renault and Nissan re-commit to their €23bn electric car drive, after Ghosn crisis
As part of the push, the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance will slim down its number models to 90 from a current 100.
Renault and Nissan Motor outlined a €23bn electrification plan that will deepen ties within the struggling Franco-Japanese alliance as competition intensifies.
The funds, announced separately by the carmakers last year, will be spent over five years to roll out 35 new battery-powered cars by the end of the decade across five common manufacturing platforms, the companies said. The move is a major departure from the Renault Zoe and Nissan Leaf electric cars that were developed and built separately.
The plans mark a step forward in the three-way alliance that also includes Mitsubishi Motors that’s still seeking to rebuild itself after nearly falling apart following the downfall of former leader Carlos Ghosn. After Renault and Nissan blazed an early EV trail with their best-selling Zoe and Leaf models, competition is heating up and the vehicles have since been leapfrogged by Tesla and Volkswagen.
“Three years ago the alliance was experiencing a crisis unprecedented in its history based on a lack of trust,” Renault chairman Jean-Dominique Senard said during a presentation. “This period belongs to the past,” he said
As part of the push, the alliance will slim down its number models to 90 from a current 100, while boosting shared underpinnings to more than 80% from 60% by 2026.
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The alliance is also planning to unveil a fifth EV platform, adding to the four already developed. A new model to replace Nissan’s Micra hatchback will be produced in France alongside the Renault R5, the companies said.
The platform building the key Nissan Ariya EV crossover and the Renault Megane E-Tech will add more than 15 models by 2030 to manufacture as many as 1.5 million cars.
Mitsubishi, the smallest of the trio, will boost its presence in Europe with two models based on Renault vehicles. In addition, Nissan will take the lead on developing solid-state battery technology while Renault will work on a model enabled for over-the-air software updates.
“These are massive investments that none of the three companies could make alone,” Mr Senard said. The latest road map for the alliance, which began in 1999, marks a focus on practical ways for the automakers to pool their resources, even as the imbalance in the cross-shareholding tie-up remains.
Renault holds a 43% stake in the bigger Japanese company with voting rights, while Nissan owns 15% of Renault and has no voting rights. This has been an unresolved source of tension although the partners have said their primary focus is making the alliance work better operationally.
Nissan in November outlined 2 trillion yen (€15bn) of investment over the next five years on EVs and batteries including 15 new electric models and a pilot plant for solid-state batteries in Yokohama.
In June, Renault mapped out a €10bn EV bet on battery supply, powertrains and new models. It plans to introduce 10 new battery-powered cars by 2025, including in the higher-margin SUV segment.
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