The heads of Renault and Nissan managed to overcome misunderstandings caused, in particular, by the scandal with Carlos Ghosn, and on February 6 in London they will present new projects that will be developed by the Franco-Japanese alliance. There were many misunderstandings, mostly related to Nissan’s reduced role in the alliance, but there were also cultural differences.

Renault will gradually reduce its stake in Nissan from 44% to 15% and will announce the creation of five joint ventures, including in India and Latin America. The alliance also includes Mitsubishi, which will be included in these projects, which may also include changes to factories in Turkey and Spain.

The Renault-Nissan alliance is 23 years old, but the last years have been the most difficult, because the two companies did not get along very well, although they have a complex industrial structure and a lot in common. Carlos Ghosn, a famous director who was arrested a few years ago, would like a merger between the two companies, but Nissan would not hear of such a thing.

Nissan executives believed that the Japanese group deserved a much more important role in the alliance, and there were also political differences, but also some caused by cultural differences between France and Japan.

Now the parties have managed to agree on future projects, some of Renault’s proposals have not been accepted by Nissan, but the Japanese will invest in the electric car division, recently created as a result of a large-scale reorganization of Renault.

Nissan fears that since Renault will also work closely with China’s Geely, its technology could end up in Chinese hands.

Sources: Le Figaro, Automotive News, Bloomberg