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Nissan has been working to define a lower threshold for its pledged, strategic investment in Renault's electric vehicle unit, Ampere, below the 15% maximum target it announced in February, two of the people said. The automakers announced a framework agreement in February and had aimed to finalise the deal as early as March. Under the framework, the Japanese automaker would take the as much as 15% of Ampere and Renault would reduce its 43% stake in Nissan. "Nissan and Renault are engaged in constructive and ongoing negotiations. The board has not heard the final report on the surveillance claim, according to the three people.

Persons: Ampere, Makoto Uchida, Ashwani Gupta, Gupta, Nissan's, Maki Shiraki, Daniel Leussink, Kevin Krolicki, David Dolan Organizations: Nissan, Renault, Reuters, Thomson Locations: TOKYO

Under the framework, the Japanese automaker would take as much as 15% of Renault's new electric vehicle unit, Ampere, while Renault would reduce its 43% stake in Nissan. The delay shows how the latest tension at the top of the Japanese automaker has complicated a drive to bring the decades-long relationship with Renault to a more equal footing. After the automaker was pitched into turmoil by the ouster of former Chairman Carlos Ghosn, Nissan executives sought to rebalance the alliance he built. We will make a statement in due course when the agreements are concluded," the Japanese automaker said in a statement. Nissan and Renault's junior partner, Mitsubishi Motors, has also indicated it may invest in the company.

Persons: Ampere, Carlos Ghosn, Makoto Uchida, Ashwani Gupta, Gupta, Maki Shiraki, Daniel Leussink, Kevin Krolicki, David Dolan Organizations: Nissan, Renault, Reuters, Mitsubishi Motors, Qualcomm, Mitsubishi, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, U.S

Under the framework, the Japanese automaker would take as much as 15% of Renault's new electric vehicle unit, Ampere, while Renault would reduce its 43% stake in Nissan. That timeline was extended when senior Nissan executives and some directors challenged detailed provisions of deal, citing the need to better protect Nissan's intellectual property, Reuters has reported. Nissan executives sought to rebalance the alliance built by former Chairman Carlos Ghosn after his ouster sent the automaker into turmoil. While the size of the investment ultimately hinges on the value of Ampere, Nissan is likely to take less than 10%, one of them said. By closing out the restructured Renault deal, Nissan executives have the opportunity to pivot to other challenges, including a medium-term strategy update and a change in approach to China, where Nissan's sales, and those of other global automakers, are in decline.

Persons: Ampere, Carlos Ghosn, Makoto Uchida, Ashwani Gupta, Gupta, Maki Shiraki, Daniel Leussink, Kevin Krolicki, David Dolan, Christian Schmollinger, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Renault, Nissan finalise, Nissan, TOKYO, Reuters, Mitsubishi Motors, Qualcomm, Mitsubishi, Thomson Locations: U.S, China

☆ Nissan will not fill COO position left open by Gupta's departure
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO, June 28 (Reuters) - Nissan Motor Co (7201.T) has decided to not fill in the chief operating officer position vacated by Ashwani Gupta under a new management structure, the Japanese automaker said on Wednesday. Responsibilities previously carried out by the operations chief will be taken over by other executives, it said. Chief Financial Officer Stephen Ma will take over operations performance duties. Japan's No.3 automaker is investigating accusations that Uchida carried out surveillance of Gupta, Reuters has reported. Nissan is in the midst of finalising the terms of a sweeping reset of its decades-old alliance with Renault SA (RENA.PA).

Persons: Ashwani Gupta, Hideyuki Sakamoto, Stephen Ma, Makoto Uchida, Nissan, Gupta, Japan's, Uchida, Satoshi Sugiyama, Muralikumar Organizations: Nissan, Reuters, Renault SA, Renault, Thomson Locations: TOKYO

The preliminary report said Nissan had installed two sets of security cameras at the entrance to Gupta's house in Tokyo's Shibuya ward, the people said. Uchida and Gupta, who was still a Nissan director and chief operating officer on June 20, were recused from the board meeting. In his letter, Nada asked for an international law firm to be brought in to investigate the surveillance of Gupta. Reuters was unable to determine if either law firm had made any finding about the harassment claim itself, beyond how it was handled. Nada said in his letter he understood that Japanese law firm Anderson Mori & Tomotsune had investigated the claim.

Persons: Ashwani Gupta, Makoto Uchida, Davis Polk, Gupta, Uchida, Nissan, Akira Takeuchi, Hari Nada, Nada, Iwata Godo, Motoo Nagai, Nagai, Anderson Mori, Tomotsune, Daniel Leussink, Maki Shiraki, Kevin Krolicki, David Clarke Organizations: Nissan, Renault, Reuters, NEW, Senior Renault, Thomson Locations: Yokohama, Tokyo's Shibuya, Tokyo, French, Austin , Texas

TOKYO, June 27 (Reuters) - Nissan Motor (7201.T) shareholders on Tuesday backed Chief Executive Makoto Uchida and other board nominees at its first annual general meeting since reaching a new deal with alliance partner Renault (RENA.PA). The shareholder meeting has taken place amid new ructions for the automaker's management. Nissan is investigating claims that Uchida carried out surveillance of deputy Ashwani Gupta, sources have said. There were no questions by shareholders about the claims at the shareholder meeting. Shareholders on Tuesday also rejected a proposal by an individual investor for higher dividends this financial year that was opposed by the company's board.

Persons: Makoto Uchida, Uchida, Ashwani Gupta, Gupta, Brenda Harvey, Maki Shiraki, Daniel Leussink, Chang, Ran Kim, David Dolan, Edwina Gibbs Organizations: Nissan, Renault, IBM, Reuters, Thomson Locations: TOKYO

TOKYO, June 24 (Reuters) - Nissan (7201.T) has launched an investigation into claims by a senior adviser that Chief Executive Makoto Uchida carried out surveillance of his deputy Ashwani Gupta, four people with direct knowledge of the matter said. In the letter, Nada said Uchida carried out surveillance over a long period. Asked to comment on the surveillance investigation, Nissan said in response to Reuters: "Independent third parties have been retained to verify facts and carry out appropriate actions." Nada did not detail in the letter how he knew of the alleged surveillance of Gupta. Nada is a member of two executive committees established by Nissan in 2019 as part of a governance reform after the Ghosn scandal.

Persons: Makoto Uchida, Ashwani Gupta, Hari Nada, Nada, Uchida, Renault, Gupta, Nissan, Akira Takeuchi, Anderson Mori, Tomotsune, Carlos Ghosn, Ghosn, Jean, Dominique Senard, Luca de Meo, de Meo, Greg Kelly, Nissan's, Ampere, David Dolan, Gilles Guillaume, Kevin Krolicki, David Clarke Organizations: Nissan, Financial Times, Reuters, Renault, NISSAN, RENAULT, Thomson Locations: TOKYO, Tokyo, Lebanon, Japan, Paris

☆ Nissan raises global EV targets; to boost U.S. input
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nissan now aims to have electrified vehicles - which include its advanced hybrid e-power cars - make up over 55% of global sales by fiscal 2030, up from a previous goal of 50%, it said. The EV mix will increase to 44% by fiscal 2026 from an earlier target of 40%, Nissan said. REUTERS/Mike BlakeThe automaker plans 27 new electrified vehicles by that year, 19 of which will be all-battery EVs, it said in a statement. That compared with its previous plan of 23 electrified vehicles including 15 all-battery EVs. Nissan is confident it will be in compliance with the Act due to the localisation of battery production starting from 2026.

☆ Nissan considering second battery source in U.S., Gupta says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

TOKYO, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Nissan Motor Co Ltd (7203.T) is considering securing a second battery source in the United States to help the Japanese automaker meet requirements for the Inflation Reduction Act, Chief Operating Officer Ashwani Gupta said on Monday. Gupta made the comment during briefing about Nissan's electrification strategy. The company aims to raise its global share of electric vehicles sales to more than 55% by 2030 from a previous forecast of 50%. Reporting by Rocky Swift; Editing by David DolanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Nissan raises global EV targets; to increase U.S. localisation
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nissan now aims to have electrified vehicles - which include its advanced hybrid e-power cars - make up over 55% of global sales by fiscal 2030, from a previous goal of 50%, it said. The automaker plans 27 new electrified vehicles by that year, 19 of which will be all-battery EVs, it said in a statement. That compared with its previous plan of 23 electrified vehicles including 15 all-battery EVs. Nissan is confident it will be in compliance with the Act due to the localisation starting calendar year 2026, Gupta said in an online briefing. Reporting by Rocky Swift; Editing by David Dolan and Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Nissan, Renault to invest $600 million to make 6 new models in India
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Mike BlakeTOKYO, Feb 13 (Reuters) - Nissan Motor Co (7201.T) and Renault SA (RENA.PA) said on Monday they would invest $600 million to make six new models in India, one of three markets in which the two automakers plan to coordinate closely in a revamped alliance announced last week. Two models would be electric vehicles (EVs), the companies' first in India; the others would be sports utility vehicles. Unlike Nissan, Renault does not have a significant presence China, the United States and Japan, raising the stakes for its success in India. Industry-wide sales in India surged 23% last year to 4.4 million vehicles, overtaking the Japanese market, according to S&P Global Mobility. The Chennai plant can produce about 500,000 vehicles a year, but last year Renault sold only 87,000 in India and Nissan 35,000.

Nissan wants to reduce Renault’s 43% holding to 15%, on par with Nissan’s stake in the French group, Reuters reports. Free cash flow will turn positive to the tune of 388 billion yen ($2.7 billion) by 2024, Morningstar estimates. He could, for example, ask shareholders to buy some of Renault’s Nissan stock. Or he could consider borrowing more; even after buying back a chunk from Renault, Nissan’s debt-to-EBITDA multiple could manage it. Nissan’s Renault reshuffle will drive a capital raise; he just needs to pick a route.

The talks, which could prompt the biggest reset in the alliance since the 2018 arrest of longtime executive Carlos Ghosn, have included consideration of Renault selling some of its Nissan stake, two people with knowledge of them said. Renault and Nissan said in a joint statement that they were "engaged in trustful discussions around several initiatives" including a potential Nissan investment in the EV venture and what they called "structural improvements" in their alliance. In exchange for investing in the EV venture, Nissan is looking to Renault to reduce its stake in the Japanese automaker, a person familiar with the talks said. Nissan may consider raising funds to buy back the shares held by Renault, one person told Reuters. Nissan may need to raise funds to buy the shares back from Renault, the source added.

☆ Nissan’s Ashwani Gupta on the need for speed: podcast
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-20 | by ( Pete Sweeney | Thomson Reuters | Asia Economics Editor Pete Sweeney Joined Reuters Breakingviews In Hong Kong In September Previously He Served As Reuters' Chief Correspondent For China Economy | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Thomson ReutersAsia Economics Editor Pete Sweeney joined Reuters Breakingviews in Hong Kong in September 2016. Previously he served as Reuters' chief correspondent for China Economy and Markets, running teams in Shanghai and Beijing; before that he was editor of China Economic Review, a monthly magazine focused on providing news and analysis on the mainland economy. Sweeney came to China as a Fulbright scholar in 2008, and in that role conducted research on the Chinese aviation industry and outbound M&A. In prior incarnations he helped resettle refugees in Atlanta, covered the European Union out of Brussels, and took a poorly timed swing at craft-beer entrepreneurship in Quito even as the Ecuadorean currency collapsed (not his fault). He speaks Mandarin Chinese, at the expense of his Spanish.

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