BEIJING/TOKYO - Nissan’s advanced technologies including platforms and electric powertrains could give it leverage in a merger involving Renault and Fiat Chrysler, thanks to a royalty system it has with the former, two people with knowledge of the matter said.
Currently Renault SA pays less for technology developed by Nissan than the Japanese automaker pays for French technology, a third person said. “In that sense, FCA, if everything went well, would become another ‘client’ of ours and that’s good. More business for us.”The potential Renault-FCA deal has complicated the Japanese automaker’s already uneasy alliance with Renault. A further deal with Fiat Chrysler looks likely at least in the near term to weaken Nissan’s influence in the 20-year-old partnership.
By joining forces, Renault and FCA hope to consolidate what would have been two electric vehicle development programs into one, and then deploy the resulting technology across a much larger range of vehicles, reducing costs. The Nissan Leaf is the world’s top-selling EV, with sales of more than 400,000 since its launch in 2010.
As a result, the French government would be left with a 7.5 percent voting stake in the new company, potentially easing a source of tension between Nissan and Paris, as the current arrangement effectively hands the government outsized influence over the Japanese automaker.There is also the issue of regional overlap. FCA and Nissan are rivals in the North American truck and SUV market, where Nissan has struggled with poor margins.