Nissan may already looking for a new partner
As reported by the Financial Times, Nissan’s CEO is said to have informed Honda’s management that he will end the merger talks. There were reports this week that the merger, which had been in the pipeline since December, would not materialise after all. This comes after Honda allegedly wanted to make the currently economically less successful car manufacturer Nissan a Honda subsidiary – and not enter into a partnership of equal status as previously intended. Apparently, it was a “take it or leave it” offer. While this has not been confirmed, the merger seems off the table.
However, further information from the FT article makes it clear that Nissan is probably dependent on a partner for its reorganisation: “The search for new partners would be broad and outside the automotive industry,” the business newspaper cites two people familiar with the matter.
And so a partnership already being discussed last year could potentially materialise after all. Some Nissan board members are said to be “open to considering a partnership with Taiwanese iPhone contract manufacturer Foxconn,” the Financial Times writes. Foxconn, which is also involved in the car industry with the Foxtron brand and its own electric platform, is said to have asked Renault in 2024 whether it could take over Nissan shares that the French company wanted to sell. This contact is said to have triggered the “frantic but fleeting round of merger negotiations with Honda.”
Foxconn’s interest in a Nissan partnership is no coincidence: Jun Seki, head of strategy at Foxconn’s electric vehicle division, was himself active in Nissan’s top management until the end of 2019.
There has been no official statement from Nissan and Honda at this point. Both companies want to announce the somewhat disappointing results of their merger talks next Thursday. It should then also be clear who exactly ended the talks – and when.
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