New Leadership Structure Expected for R-N-M Alliance

Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors reportedly aim to create a new entity to manage their alliance that would tighten oversight without requiring an outright merger.

The plan will be announced tomorrow in Yokohama, sources tell the Financial Times. Nissan confirms only that there will be a press conference attended by the CEOs of all three carmakers and newly appointed Renault Chairman Jean-Dominique Senard.

Earlier media reports suggest Senard will be named to chair the new management board.

The scheme would replace two current Dutch-based ventures that manage the three-way alliance among the carmakers. One coordinates activities between Renault and Nissan. The second oversees Nissan and its controlling stake in Mitsubishi Motors.

Until his arrest three months ago, Carlos Ghosn was CEO of Renault and chairman of all three carmakers and their management ventures. Prosecutors claim he abused his power in those roles.

Ghosn denies any wrongdoing. He has depicted his arrest as a plot by senior Nissan executives to thwart a Renault-Nissan merger.