Nissan Eyes Capital Restructuring in Alliance with Renault

June 26, 2018

Yokohama- Nissan Motor Co. Chairman Carlos Ghosn on Tuesday indicated again his intention to review the capital structure of his company's alliance with France's Renault SA.

At a general shareholders meeting in Yokohama, south of Tokyo, Ghosn, also chairman and chief executive officer at Renault, stressed the importance of ensuring the long-term sustainability of the alliance through such a review.

But he did not get into any detail of the possible capital restructuring, only saying that there are various options.

Nissan President Hiroto Saikawa apologized over a scandal in which unqualified workers participated in finished car inspections. The scandal came to light in autumn last year.

"We're very sorry for causing anxiety among shareholders," he said, pledging to implement measures to prevent any recurrence of such wrongdoing.

As for the relationship with Renault, Ghosn expressed his resolve to "maintain each company's independence and autonomy."

Renault holds 43.4 pct of Nissan, while the Japanese company owns 15 pct of its French partner.

In terms of worldwide vehicle sales, the alliance, also including Mitsubishi Motors Corp. <7211>, which is under the wing of Nissan, is the second-biggest player after Germany's Volkswagen AG.

The French government, the biggest shareholder of Renault, is reportedly asking Ghosn to merge Renault and Nissan after allowing Ghosn to stay on as Renault chairman and CEO.

During the day's meeting, a shareholder asked, "Who took responsibility for the scandal?" criticizing Nissan's management team.

Ghosn replied that he did not apologize when the scandal broke because Nissan's boss is CEO Saikawa, defending his response. Ghosn retired as Nissan CEO and president in April last year.

Ghosn said his executive pay in fiscal 2017 fell 30 pct from the previous year to 730 million yen, while that of Saikawa increased nearly 30 pct to 500 million yen. Jiji Press