Renault and Nissan conclude definitive agreements

Renault and Nissan conclude definitive agreements

PARIS and YOKOHAMA (July 26, 2023) – Renault Group and Nissan Motor Co., Ltd today announced that they have entered into the definitive agreements contemplated by the binding framework agreement executed and announced on February 6, 2023. The transactions contemplated in these definitive agreements are subject to a limited number of conditions precedent, including regulatory approvals, and completion is expected to occur in the fourth quarter of 2023.

 

Jean-Dominique Senard, Chairman of The Alliance, said: The agreements that have been signed today allow us to step into the next chapter of the Alliance. They strengthen our long-standing partnership and will maximize value creation for each Alliance member. This also lays the foundations for a new balanced, fair, and effective governance.

Makoto Uchida, President and CEO, Nissan Motor Co. Ltd., said: “With the finalization of the definitive agreements, we have entered the next phase of collaboration with Renault and Mitsubishi Motors in mutually beneficial areas of innovations. This will create additional value through initiatives aligned to Nissan’s Ambition 2030 and electrification strategy.  The investment opportunity in Ampere complements and strengthens Nissan’s ongoing electric push in Europe and will deliver numerous synergies, including cost efficiencies, regulatory compliance, and a broader range of EV products and powertrains.

Luca de Meo, CEO of Renault Group, said: “These agreements provide us with a solid base to reactivate business operations worldwide in key markets, with the potential to generate hundreds of millions in value for Renault, Nissan, Mitsubishi and stakeholders. They give us the strategic agility that we need more than ever in today’s rapidly evolving environment. We are all engaged with the right mindset and welcome Nissan as a strong partner in our upcoming EV and Software pure player Ampere. It confirms the attractiveness of the project to be front runner in Europe, allowing Renault and its Alliance partners to position themselves ahead of the starting grid for the EV and software race in Europe.”

The agreements focus on extending the Alliance collaboration in three areas:

  • High-value-creation operational projects in India, Latin America and Europe;
  • Enhanced strategic agility with new initiatives that partners can join; and
  • Rebalanced Renault Group-Nissan cross-shareholdings and reinforced Alliance governance.

In the first area, the partners are considering new key projects in Latin America, India and Europe that aim to deliver win-win, large-scale and actionable benefits. Among these, Renault Group and Nissan have already announced their renewed commitment to Indian operations through new investment and vehicles.

In the second area of enhanced cooperation, the partners agreed to explore their existing strategies in electrification and low-emission technologies by investing and collaborating in respective member-company projects that could provide incremental value to each individual business.

As part of this cooperation, Nissan has confirmed its intention to become a strategic investor in Ampere, Renault Group’s new EV and software entity in Europe. Accordingly, Nissan has committed to invest in Ampere up to Euro 600 million consistent with being a strategic investor in Ampere and securing a board seat. This investment opportunity aligns with Nissan’s electrification strategy, creating multiple potential benefits and synergies that complement Nissan’s own goals and initiatives in Europe and other potential markets.

The definitive agreements also formalize the rebalancing of the Renault Group-Nissan cross-shareholdings and the reinforcement of the governance of the Alliance. Renault Group and Nissan entered into a new Alliance agreement that will replace the current agreements governing the Alliance (namely, the Restated Alliance Master Agreement, the Alliance Equity Participation Agreement and the Memorandum of Understanding of March 12, 2019).

As announced on February 6, 2023, Renault Group and Nissan will retain cross-shareholdings of 15% with lock-up and standstill obligations. Renault will transfer 28.4% of its Nissan shares into a French trust, where the entrusted shares will be voted neutrally, subject to limited exceptions. Renault Group would continue to fully benefit from the economic rights (dividends and proceeds of share sales) from the entrusted shares until such shares are sold. The transfer to the trust would trigger no impairment in Renault Group financial statements.

As a result of the transfer of the 28.4% of Nissan shares to the trust, Nissan would be able to exercise its voting rights attached to its shareholding in Renault Group. The voting rights of Renault Group and Nissan would be capped at 15% of the exercisable voting rights, with both companies able to freely exercise their voting rights within such limit.

Renault Group would instruct the trustee to sell the entrusted Nissan shares if commercially reasonable for Renault Group, but it has no obligation to sell the shares within a specific pre-determined period of time. Renault Group would have full flexibility to sell the Nissan shares held in the trust, within a coordinated and orderly process with Nissan, in which Nissan would benefit from a right of first offer, to its or the benefit of a designated third party.

Renault and Nissan renew commitment to Indian operations through new investment and vehicles

Renault and Nissan renew commitment to Indian operations through new investment and vehicles

  • $600m USD/₹5300 crores INR investment supporting six new models to be made in India, including two electric vehicles
  • Additional R&D activities to create up to 2,000 new jobs
  • Chennai factory to become a carbon-neutral vehicle plant

 

Chennai, Yokohama, Boulogne-Billancourt, February 13, 2023. Renault and Nissan have announced a new long-term vision for India, increasing production and R&D activities, introducing electric vehicles, and transitioning to carbon-neutral manufacturing.

From their base in Chennai, the companies will collaborate on six new production vehicles for domestic and international customers, including two new fully electric vehicles, uplifting the Renault-Nissan centre into an international export hub.

An initial investment of around $600m USD / ₹5300 bn INR is planned to support the new projects, which will see an up to 2,000 additional new jobs created at the Renault Nissan Technology & Business Centre in Chennai. At the same time, the RNAIPL factory will become carbon-neutral with a significant increase in renewable energy generation.

Following last week’s announcement of new high-value-creation operational projects for the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance, the future for Renault and Nissan’s Indian operations was outlined today at an official ceremony in Chennai by Nissan’s Director, Chief Operating Officer, Ashwani Gupta, alongside officials from the Tamil Nadu Government.

Guillaume Cartier, Chairperson for Nissan’s Africa, Middle East, India, Europe and Oceania region, said: “Renault and Nissan are fully committed to the Indian market, committed to electrifying the Indian market and committed to minimising our impact on the environment.
India was the first Alliance plant and India will be at the centre of this new chapter of the Alliance, with new vehicles, new R&D activities and new export markets taking our joint operations to the next level.
For the first time, the Nissan line-up in India will reflect our global power in high-quality SUVs and EVs, bringing greater value to our employees, customers and communities.”

François Provost, International Development & Partnerships Renault Group and Managing Director of Alliance Purchasing Organization, said: “India is a key market for Renault Group. Over the past 14 years, we have been developing the Renault Brand with our teams and dealers, up to reaching 100 thousand vehicles sold per year. India has also a key role in our R&D worldwide footprint. This project together with Nissan is a first concrete output of the new Alliance ambition released on February 6th.

Mr. S Krishnan, Additional Chief Secretary, Industries, Government of Tamil Nadu, said: The Renault-Nissan Alliance in Tamil Nadu has had manufacturing and design facilities operating in the State for more than 15 years now. This is a very valuable and important relationship for the Government of Tamil Nadu and the Alliance. It employs about 15,000 people directly in the State and has been one of the mainstays in ensuring that Tamil Nadu remains the automotive capital of India and an important hub for the manufacture of automobiles and auto components and automobile design as well. We are very excited about this new proposal of modernization and fresh investment by the Renault-Nissan Alliance in Tamil Nadu. This genuinely brings to life ‘Make in Tamil Nadu and Make in India for the World.“

Introducing new models into new segments

The six new models will comprise of three for each company, engineered and built in Chennai. They will be built on common Alliance platforms while retaining the individual, distinctive styling of the respective brands.

They will include four new C-segment SUVs. Two new A-segment electric vehicles will be the first EVs for both Renault and Nissan in India, building on the heritage and expertise of both brands in mass-market electrification, which began with the Nissan LEAF and Renault Zoe more than a decade ago.

An international Renault and Nissan hub in Chennai

The new models will not only be aimed at Indian customers but will also signal a significant increase in exports from India, boosting plant utilisation to 80% and securing many thousands of jobs at the RNAIPL plant in Chennai for many years to come.

Complementing the additional production will be an increase in R&D and associated activities at the Renault Nissan Technology & Business Centre India, which is expected to create up to 2,000 new jobs at the site near Chennai, focusing on new Indian and international projects.

Roadmap to carbon neutral vehicle manufacturing

The RNAIPL plant, already one of the Alliance’s leading centres for energy and resource reduction, also is announcing its roadmap to carbon neutrality.

This will be achieved by 2045, through an ongoing programme to transition to 100% renewable energy, while reducing energy consumption at the plant by 50% compared to today.

Chennai Plant already sources more than 50% of its electricity from renewables, including solar, biomass and wind. The existing solar plant will become more than six times bigger, expanding to a 14MW plant from 2.2MW today.

Renewed partnership

As a consequence of the renewed commitment of both companies to the Indian market, Renault and Nissan are realigning their shareholding in their joint operations.

Under the new framework agreement, Renault Nissan Automotive India Private Ltd (RNAIPL) will move to an ownership of 51% Nissan – 49% Renault. Renault Nissan Technology Business Centre (RNTBCI) will move to an ownership of 51% Renault -49% Nissan.  This reinforces the partnership for the long-term and will empower the joint ventures with more responsibility and more autonomy.

Nissan AMIEO Chairperson Cartier added: “Renault and Nissan have renewed their commitment to India today and we thank the Tamil Nadu Government for their strong partnership and supportI was extremely proud to be in Chennai to share the good news with the team. Their performance and competitiveness have given us the confidence to invest for the long-term.”

Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance open a new chapter for their partnership

Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance open a new chapter for their partnership

London, Paris, Tokyo, Yokohama – February 6, 2023 – Following approval by the Boards of Directors of Renault Group and Nissan Motor Co., Ltd, Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance today announced new initiatives to take their partnership to the next level.

A three-dimension program to maximize value creation for all Alliance stakeholders will include:

  • High-value-creation operational projects in Latin America, India and Europe;
  • Enhanced strategic agility with new initiatives that partners can join;
  • A rebalanced Renault Group-Nissan cross-shareholding and reinforced Alliance governance.

Renault Group and Nissan have entered into a binding framework agreement regarding the above-mentioned transactions, with a view of reaching definitive agreements by the end of the first quarter of 2023. The transactions contemplated in these definitive agreements would be subject to a limited number of conditions precedent, including regulatory approvals, and completion is expected to occur in the fourth quarter of 2023.

This far-reaching program paves the way for a renewal and strengthening of the 24-year partnership, creating a new agile spirit and harnessing the pioneering technologies of all three Alliance members. This next level will create more growth opportunities and help secure operating efficiencies for each Alliance company to innovate and transform in the fast-changing market for automotive products and mobility services.

Details of the binding framework agreement will be announced during a joint conference today at 8.30 am GMT in London: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJaOHCIg23g 

Statement

Statement

After several months of constructive discussions with Nissan Motor Co., Ltd, Renault Group today announced that, subject to the approval of its board of directors, it has reached an important milestone in its discussions on defining new foundations for their partnership.

The ambition is to strengthen the ties of the Alliance and maximize value creation for all stakeholders with a three-stage approach:

  • Reloading the partnership with high-value-creation operational projects
    • This would consist of key projects in Latin America, India and Europe, which would be deployed along 3 dimensions: markets, vehicles and technologies
  • Enhancing strategic agility with new initiatives that partners can join
    • Nissan to invest in Ampere, the EV & Software pure player founded by Renault Group, aiming to become a strategic shareholder.
  • A balanced governance and cross-shareholding to foster accelerated operational efficiencies
    • Renault Group and Nissan would retain a 15% cross-shareholding, with a lock-up obligation, as well as a standstill obligation. They would both be able to freely exercise the voting rights attached to their 15% direct shareholding, with a 15% cap.
    • Renault Group would transfer 28.4% of Nissan shares into a French trust, where the voting rights would be “neutralized” for most of the decisions, but the economic rights (dividends and shares’ sale proceeds) would still entirely benefit to Renault Group until such shares are sold.
    • Renault Group would instruct the trustee to sell the entrusted Nissan shares if commercially reasonable for Renault Group in a coordinated and orderly process, but it would have no obligation to sell the shares within a specific pre-determined period of time.
    • The Alliance Operating Board would remain the coordination forum.

The agreements are being finalized and the transaction remains subject to the approval of the boards of directors of Renault Group and Nissan.

The Alliance members plan to make an announcement immediately after the board approvals.

Renault Group and Nissan Motor Co engaged in trustful discussions to reinforce the cooperation and the future of the Alliance

Renault Group and Nissan Motor Co engaged in trustful discussions to reinforce the cooperation and the future of the Alliance

Press Release – Paris, Tokyo, Yokohama – October 10th, 2022

Renault Group and Nissan Motor Co are currently engaged in trustful discussions around several initiatives as part of continued efforts to reinforce the cooperation and the future of the Alliance.

The discussions include:

  • An agreement on a set of strategic common initiatives across markets, products, and technologies.
  • Nissan’s consideration to invest in the new Renault EV entity which will support Renault’s Renaulution strategy and will be one of the strategic steps towards Nissan Ambition 2030.
  • The companies continue to drive structural improvements to ensure sustainable Alliance operations and governance.

Any further communication will be done in due course by the Alliance members.

First visit of Ashwani Gupta, COO of Nissan to Renault Group Refactory in Flins on September 1st, 2022

First visit of Ashwani Gupta, COO of Nissan to Renault Group Refactory in Flins on September 1st, 2022

Ashwani Gupta has visited for the first time the Renault Group Refactory, the first European plant dedicated to the circular economy of mobility. The Refactory is emblematic of the Renaulution project, which commits Renault Group to a deep, quick and sustainable transformation, driven by value creation.

Welcomed by Jose Vicente de los Mozos, Executive Vice President Group Industry and Group Country Head Iberia, he discovered with three other executives of Nissan, the main operating activities of the plant: the second life of batteries, the refurbishing activities of used cars, the industrial innovation center and the digital control tower, the fuel cell assembly line of Hyvia as well as the remanufacturing center.

Ashwani Gupta was impressed to see how innovation in the Refactory had improved operational efficiency within the group but also had created new businesses in an environmentally and socially responsive way. He is confident it shall bring many new opportunities to work together within the Alliance.

Visit of Ashwani Gupta, COO of Nissan, to the Technocentre on 27 April 2022

First visit of Ashwani Gupta, COO of Nissan to Renault Group Refactory in Flins on September 1st, 2022

Ashwani Gupta has visited for the first time the Renault Group Refactory, the first European plant dedicated to the circular economy of mobility. The Refactory is emblematic of the Renaulution project, which commits Renault Group to a deep, quick and sustainable transformation, driven by value creation.

Welcomed by Jose Vicente de los Mozos, Executive Vice President Group Industry and Group Country Head Iberia, he discovered with three other executives of Nissan, the main operating activities of the plant: the second life of batteries, the refurbishing activities of used cars, the industrial innovation center and the digital control tower, the fuel cell assembly line of Hyvia as well as the remanufacturing center.

Ashwani Gupta was impressed to see how innovation in the Refactory had improved operational efficiency within the group but also had created new businesses in an environmentally and socially responsive way. He is confident it shall bring many new opportunities to work together within the Alliance.

Alliance Ventures closely monitors the Mobility innovation ecosystem – Autonomous Driving

Alliance Ventures closely monitors the Mobility innovation ecosystem – Autonomous Driving

 

Alliance Ventures’ 5 Innovation Territories

Alliance Ventures focuses its strategic investments over 5 Innovation Territories which have been closely tracked since 2018:

  • New Mobility
  • Autonomous Driving
  • Electric Vehicle, Cleantech & Energy
  • Connected Servicess
  • Enterprise 2.0

 

Our insights on the Autonomous Driving Innovation Ecosystem

We would like to share our vision and analysis of each Innovation Territory, focusing now on Autonomous Driving in which we categorized Manufacturers, Perception sensors and algorithms, Mobility Many-Core Chip suppliers, AI for decision making, Incidentology, Explainable AI for ADAS and more. The results presented below have been found from our internal data, monitored from 2018 to 2021.

While investments in Autonomous Driving startups have been stable in number of fundraising rounds, they have been especially strong over the first semester of 2020, reaching $5.5B, almost half the investments recorded between January 2018 and June 2021. Within this ecosystem, startups from the United States have focused 64% of those amounts with Waymo raising $2.25B. As we have seen in the New Mobility sector, in Autonomous Driving China has the largest median raised money per Autonomous Driving startup ($100M) far ahead of the US ($17M).

We observed an interesting trend in the distribution of the series over the period. Seed and Series A were the most common in 2018 (over 80% of Series in Autonomous Driving. However since 2019, investments amounts have been starting to focus more and more on larger rounds with Series C+ now having all the money focused on them ($1.5B out of $1.7B in the first semester of 2021).

When we take an even closer look within Autonomous Driving which sub-categories get the largest focus, we found out that in the top 3 Manufacturers (67% in amount raised), Perception sensors and algorithms (24%) and Many-core chip suppliers (9%) have raised the most money

Included in these amounts are some major success stories like our portfolio startup Weride that raised a 257M€ Series C in May 2021 including 30M€ from Alliance Ventures, reaching a post-money valuation of close to 2.8B€. The American Autonomous Driving manufacturer Waymo also raised an astonishing $2.2B in 2020.

Sources: Pitchbook, Crunchbase, Axios, Strictky VC Newsletter, Trucks Newsletter

 

Usable image for the article online:

https://www.cubictelecom.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/2030-AVs-shutterstock_1793836513-Cropped-2048×1152.jpg

 

 

Chinese driverless car company WeRide launches self-driving vans for deliveries

Chinese driverless car company WeRide launches self-driving vans for deliveries

PORTFOLIO NEWS

China-based autonomous driving startup WeRide announced in Summer 2021 that it will deepen joint development with Nissan of autonomous driving technology for the Chinese market. The announcement comes as the company raised $310 million to reach a valuation of $3.3 billion.

Led by founder Tony Han, the company is developing Level 4 autonomous standard, in which the vehicle can manage all aspects of driving under most circumstances without human intervention.

WeRide announced in September 2021 that it will begin developing self-driving vans for urban logistics services in collaboration with manufacturer JMC and delivery company ZTO Express.

“We’re seeing that the line between passenger vehicle and city logistics vehicle is disappearing,” Tony Han, CEO of WeRide, told CNBC on Thursday. “This is a self-driving vehicle. If you put a seat in it, it can serve as a robotaxi car. If you put a cabinet in it, it’s really a logistics car.”

This news make the headlines as WeRide reaches 10 million kilometers of autonomous driving on  open roads, of which the mileage of fully unmanned driving exceeded 2.5 million kilometers. WeRide was able to achieve this milestone by continuously testing and operating its self-driving fleets. Over the previous four years, the company has grown its fleet to over 300 vehicles in China and the United States.

ABOUT WERIDE

Founded in 2017 by Tony Han together with a group of talented individuals, WeRide.ai has emerged as the leading autonomous driving company aiming to achieve large-scale, commercial deployment of fully L4 autonomous vehicles for the public. WeRdi.ai is committed to using artificial intelligence to deliver fully autonomous vehicles that operate without human intervention to perceive the environment and deliver a safe, robust, and convenient Mobility as a Service. WeRide.ai is a privately held company headquartered in Guangzhou, with offices in Sunnyvale, Beijing and Anqing. For more information, visit www.weride.ai.

ABOUT RENAULT-NISSAN-MITSUBISHI

Groupe Renault, Nissan Motor Company and Mitsubishi Motors represent the world’s largest automotive alliance. It is the longest-lasting and most productive cross-cultural partnership in the auto industry, whose member companies are focused on collaboration and maximizing synergies to boost competitiveness. This strategic alliance is among the industry leaders in zero-emission vehicles and is developing the latest advanced technologies, with plans to offer autonomous drive, connectivity features and services on a wide range of affordable vehicles.

ABOUT ALLIANCE VENTURES

Alliance Ventures is the strategic venture capital fund of Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi, the world’s largest automotive alliance. The fund, launched in 2018 and co-located in Amsterdam, Paris and the Silicon-Valley, plans to invest to support open innovation. Alliance Ventures targets technology and business model innovation in new mobility, autonomous driving, connected services, EV & energy and enterprise 2.0. By drawing on expertise and business opportunities from across the world’s largest automotive alliance, the fund makes strategic investments at all start-up stages and incubates new automotive entrepreneurs at the cutting edge of next-generation systems for the automotive industry.

 

Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi at ecomotion

Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi at ecomotion

Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi was at the biggest start-up event in Tel-Aviv, Israel. Ecomotion is a dynamic community with 580 start-ups and 5,000 members in the Smart Transportation sector.

Our teams, Alliance Ventures & Alliance Open Innovation Lab, participated to one keynote and two panel sessions.

Matthieu de Chanville, Director of Alliance Ventures in charge of Business Partners & Fund of Funds, made presentations about “The Future of investing in Mobility” and “Investors looking to invest”.

“In our industry, of autonomous technologies and mobility services, Israel is the third most important place after the US and China, for technologies to build the car of the future. We have to be here.”, said Matthieu de Chanville

Watch Matthieu De Chanville’s keynote here.

Antoine Basseville, Director of Alliance Tel Aviv Open Innovation Lab, participated to a panel session named “How Mice can dance with an Elephant”, to debate on how corporates and startups can work together without harming each other.
Watch the full session here.

Eventually, Gareth Dunsmore, Electric vehicle Director, Nissan Europe, participated to a panel session which subject was “From oil to electrons”.
Watch the full session here.