Nissan will acquire a stake in Ampere, the future independent electric car division of Renault Group. This is the result of an agreement between the two companies, which is still subject to the approval of the respective supervisory boards.
The amount Nissan will invest in Ampere has not yet been disclosed in the two companies’ communications. “After several months of constructive discussions”, an “important milestone has been reached in the negotiations to define new foundations for the partnership”, writes Renault, for example. Nissan’s goal in investing in Ampere is to become a “strategic shareholder”.
According to earlier statements by Renault CEO Luca de Meo, Ampere is to become “a fully-fledged OEM with around 10,000 employees”. Ampere will offer six electric models by 2030: The Renault 5 Electric and Renault 4 Electric, the Megane E-Tech Electric, the Scénic Electric and two other models yet to be revealed.
However, the investment in Ampere is just one of three cornerstones agreed to “strengthen the alliance’s links and maximise value creation for all parties”. This is because the partners also want to launch “operational projects with high value creation”. Mentioned at this point are “key projects in Latin America, India and Europe” – but details are not yet given.
The new foundation for future cooperation between Renault and Nissan also allows Renault to reduce its influence in the Japanese carmaker: the Renault Group will significantly reduce its stake in Nissan – from around 43 per cent to 15 per cent. The cross-shareholding would thus be 15 per cent each, and there is also a standstill obligation. “They would both be able to freely exercise the voting rights attached to their 15% direct shareholding, with a 15% cap,” the statement says. In other words, neither partner is to be more powerful than the other.
The 28.4 per cent of Nissan shares that Renault wants to cede are to be transferred to a French trust. This means that Renault no longer has the voting rights of these shares, which are to be “neutralised”. However, Renault is still to receive the dividends from these shares and also the proceeds from possible future sales.
There are no further details or even voices of the CEOs at this stage. The announcement states that both alliance members intend to provide further details “immediately after approval by the supervisory board”.
renaultgroup.com, nissannews.com
Keyword: Nissan to acquire stake in Renault’s Ampere