Bruno Le Maire announced Wednesday (January 16th) that the French government had launched the process to replace Carlos Ghosn as head of Renault, confirming information unveiled on January 15 by Reuters.
The French state, the largest shareholder of the French car manufacturer, has asked that Renault’s board of directors be convened “in the coming days” in order to “designate [r] a new sustainable governance for Renault,” the minister said. of Economy and Finance on LCI. This meeting is likely to take place on Sunday, January 20, according to Reuters sources.
“We will have to move on”
The government has so far supported the group’s decision to keep Carlos Ghosn in office, opting instead for interim leadership after the arrest of the CEO in November at Japan on charges of financial malfeasance at Nissan.
“I have always pointed out, recalling the presumption of innocence of Carlos Ghosn, that if Carlos Ghosn were to be permanently prevented, we will have to move on, to a new stage, we are there and we are now entering a new stage. “explained Bruno Le Maire.
While Carlos Ghosn has so far been the president of the diamond manufacturer and that of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance, “it will be up to the board of directors to define exactly the outline [of] the functions” of his successor in the context future governance, said the minister.
The president of Michelin, favorite of the government?
While the name of Michelin’s president, Jean-Dominique Senard, is regularly cited for the succession of Carlos GhosnBruno Le Maire stressed that “it is the board of directors who will have to decide on [the various] candidates and the state will vote on the candidates who will be submitted as a reference shareholder”.
However, he described Jean-Dominique Senard as “a great industrialist […] a man who has a social conception of the company […] and who is a specialist in the automotive sector since he has led Michelin with a lot talent and excellent results “.
Carlos Ghosn still in detention
The arrest of Renault CEO and now ex-president of Nissan Carlos Ghosn on November 19, then his indictment – for not having declared the entirety of his remuneration paid by Nissan between 2010 and 2015 – weakened the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance, Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa calling for measures to reduce Renault’s weight.
Renault owns 43.4% of Nissan which, for its part, has 15% of the French manufacturer but no voting rights. Nissan controls in turn Mitsubishi via a 34% share.
But according to Bruno Le Maire, “the question of participation in the Renault-Nissan alliance is not on the table”.
With Reuters (Myriam Rivet, edited by Sophie Louet)