Renault needs strong CEO in event of Ghosn replacement– French minister
MergerMarket.com
- France and Japan committed to stable alliance with Nissan and Mitsubishi
- French State will not alter stake in Renault
Renault [EPA:RNO] needs stable governance and a strong CEO to face the fierce competition and the challenges ahead for the automotive sector, French State Minister attached to the economy minister, Agnès Pannier-Runacher, said yesterday (20 November) during a press conference in the French embassy in Tokyo.
Pannier-Runacher was visiting Tokyo for the French Japanese Centenary Business Summit and to promote France as the first post-Brexit EU 27 financial destination.
France and Japan are committed to a stable shareholding structure for Renault and its alliance with Nissan [TYO:7201] and Mitsubishi Motors [TYO:7211], Pannier-Runacher said. The French State will neither decrease or increase its stake in Renault, she added.
Carlos Ghosn, Chairman and CEO of Renault, was arrested on Monday by Japanese authorities over allegations of financial misconduct in Japan. Ghosn was also chairman and CEO of Nissan, and chairman of Mitsubishi Motors.
Renault’s board last night announced it named COO Thierry Bolloré as interim deputy CEO and Ghosn remains Chairman and CEO.
The minister declined to comment on whether the government would push for a French CEO to lead the alliance with Nissan and Mitsubishi. We have no preference for the potential next leader of the alliance if it appears Ghosn is still not in a position to lead, she said.
On 20 November, Bruno Le Maire, French Minister for Economy and Finance, and Hiroshige Seko, Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, in a joint press release reaffirmed “the strong support of the French and Japanese governments to the Alliance formed between Renault and Nissan, a world-leading car manufacturer and one of the greatest symbols of Franco-Japanese industrial cooperation and their shared wish to maintain this winning cooperation”.
Pannier-Runacher was visiting Tokyo for the French Japanese Centenary Business Summit and to promote France as the first post-Brexit EU 27 financial destination.
France and Japan are committed to a stable shareholding structure for Renault and its alliance with Nissan [TYO:7201] and Mitsubishi Motors [TYO:7211], Pannier-Runacher said. The French State will neither decrease or increase its stake in Renault, she added.
Carlos Ghosn, Chairman and CEO of Renault, was arrested on Monday by Japanese authorities over allegations of financial misconduct in Japan. Ghosn was also chairman and CEO of Nissan, and chairman of Mitsubishi Motors.
Renault’s board last night announced it named COO Thierry Bolloré as interim deputy CEO and Ghosn remains Chairman and CEO.
The minister declined to comment on whether the government would push for a French CEO to lead the alliance with Nissan and Mitsubishi. We have no preference for the potential next leader of the alliance if it appears Ghosn is still not in a position to lead, she said.
On 20 November, Bruno Le Maire, French Minister for Economy and Finance, and Hiroshige Seko, Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, in a joint press release reaffirmed “the strong support of the French and Japanese governments to the Alliance formed between Renault and Nissan, a world-leading car manufacturer and one of the greatest symbols of Franco-Japanese industrial cooperation and their shared wish to maintain this winning cooperation”.
France is Renault’s largest single minority shareholder with a 15.01% stake and 28% voting rights whereas Renault’s Japanese partner Nissan holds a 15% stake but no voting rights.
Renault holds 43.4 % of Nissan, which owns a controlling 34% stake in Mitsubishi.
The French State is not leading Renault and the alliance with Nissan and Mitsubishi; it has two board members out of 17, Pannier-Runacher argued during the press conference.
Ghosn’s mandate as CEO was proposed this year to be extended to 2022 by the majority of the board, not by the French State, the minister said.
We still do not have enough information to assert whether he is guilty or not, the government minister said, adding the judicial proceeding was still ongoing.
Ghosn is for the moment not in position to lead the French group and the alliance with Nissan and Mitsubishi but shareholders agree he has been a remarkable entrepreneur, she said.
French economy minister Lemaire was expected to give an update of the situation to the press this morning at 9.30 am CET (21 November) after a conversation he had with Thierry Bolloré, the minister's press office announced earlier today.
Renault holds 43.4 % of Nissan, which owns a controlling 34% stake in Mitsubishi.
The French State is not leading Renault and the alliance with Nissan and Mitsubishi; it has two board members out of 17, Pannier-Runacher argued during the press conference.
Ghosn’s mandate as CEO was proposed this year to be extended to 2022 by the majority of the board, not by the French State, the minister said.
We still do not have enough information to assert whether he is guilty or not, the government minister said, adding the judicial proceeding was still ongoing.
Ghosn is for the moment not in position to lead the French group and the alliance with Nissan and Mitsubishi but shareholders agree he has been a remarkable entrepreneur, she said.
French economy minister Lemaire was expected to give an update of the situation to the press this morning at 9.30 am CET (21 November) after a conversation he had with Thierry Bolloré, the minister's press office announced earlier today.