Tag: Renault

Nissan accelerates corporate governance improvements

YOKOHAMA, Japan – Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.’s board of directors decided today to accelerate the company’s transition to a three statutory-committee format. The format is one of the recommendations of the Special Committee for Improving Governance delivered on March 27. Nissan sees building the best possible corporate governance structure as an urgent task and is… Continue reading Nissan accelerates corporate governance improvements

Networking and cloud services: Siemens joins alliance of VW and Amazon

DPA Volkswagen production: Amazon is to network the machines and systems of the car manufacturer worldwide – and Siemens supplies the hardware Prestigious order for Siemens Show stock market chart : The industrial group is to network the 122 Volkswagen plants with its “Digital Factory”, thereby creating the technical basis for the planned productivity gains.… Continue reading Networking and cloud services: Siemens joins alliance of VW and Amazon

Inside the Tensions at Carlos Ghosn’s Nissan

TOKYO — It was 2011, and Carlos Ghosn was preparing his automotive empire for its most ambitious phase yet. Under his plan, within five years, one of every 12 cars sold around the world would be made by Nissan of Japan. To achieve that goal and cut costs relentlessly, he said, Nissan would have to… Continue reading Inside the Tensions at Carlos Ghosn’s Nissan

CFAO accelerates in car distribution in Africa

It will be a powerful boost! CFAO, a subsidiary of conglomerate Japanese Toyota Tsusho Corporation (TTC) operating mainly in Africa , announces on Thursday the entry into exclusive negotiations with the South African group in difficulties Steinhoff (owner of Conforama in particular) to acquire 74.9% of the capital of its car distribution company in South… Continue reading CFAO accelerates in car distribution in Africa

Nissan completes sale of battery business to Envision Group

YOKOHAMA, Japan – Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. has completed the previously announced sale of its electric battery operations and production facilities to Envision Group, a world-leading digital energy company. Marking the completion of the transaction, Nissan’s Chief Competitive Officer Yasuhiro Yamauchi said: “The new company has the opportunity to grow as a battery company with… Continue reading Nissan completes sale of battery business to Envision Group

China, the latest smart small map

We had to find a smart solution for Smart. After twenty years of nagging efforts, Daimler could not decently write off its mini-city cars. Rather than bury his dream for good, the German group has decided to attempt an umpteenth relaunch with Chinese Geely. New models, new markets, new factory, new partner. “This is the… Continue reading China, the latest smart small map

Nissan unveils new City Hub dealership concept in Paris

Nissan’s first City Hub has been unveiled today, marking a new approach to dealerships for the manufacture. The new approach sees the convergence of e-commerce and a concept store. It is making its debut in Velizy 2, a shopping center just outside Paris. The Nissan City Hub features 88m2 of screen surface and displays, five… Continue reading Nissan unveils new City Hub dealership concept in Paris

Renault Starts Piloting V2G Charging Using AC

Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) using alternating-current from Renault ZOE Renault announced the launch of a new pilot project of Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) charging, which turns out to be first on a bigger scale using alternating-current. Usually, V2G was implemented through the DC line (CHAdeMO), which required the use of an expensive external bi-directional charger. As Renault didn’t yet use… Continue reading Renault Starts Piloting V2G Charging Using AC

Nissan executives allegedly orchestrated Carlos Ghosn’s arrest to kill merger with Renault

Takaaki Iwabu | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Carlos Ghosn, former chairman of Nissan Motor Co., center, sits in a vehicle as he leaves his lawyer's office in Tokyo, Japan, on Wednesday, March 6, 2019.

Nissan executives took steps to have former Chairman Carlos Ghosn jailed in the hopes the arrest would stall or kill any attempts to merge the Japanese automaker with its French counterpart Renault, reported the Wall Street Journal Thursday, citing unnamed people familiar with the matter.

Nissan CEO Hiroto Saikawa, who had in the past been close with Ghosn, said at a Jan. 31 meeting that he believed Nissan executives had gone digging for evidence and presented their findings to Japanese authorities with the purpose of removing Ghosn from power, the paper reported. Ghosn had reportedly been trying to merge the two automakers, who had formed an alliance in 1999.

Theories that Nissan executives might have had a role in Ghosn's arrest have abounded in the automotive world. Ghosn had become something of a national hero in Japan for his role in helping to turn around Nissan, but many who follow the industry say the Japanese would have balked at the idea of a foreign automaker such as Renault owning such an important company in Japan.

Ghosn spent more than 100 days in jail in Japan for an array of alleged financial misdeeds before he was released on bail. He has been stripped of his roles at the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance, which he had formerly chaired. If found guilty he could face up to 15 years in prison. He has denied the accusations.

Nissan was not immediately available for comment to CNBC, but company spokesman Nicholas Maxfield told the Wall Street Journal the motives of company executives is not relevant, and that the company found “substantial evidence of blatantly unethical conduct. The sole cause of this chain of events is the misconduct led by Ghosn.”

Read the full story in the Wall Street Journal.