The Renault-Nissan Mitsubishi Alliance is teetering. Whose interest has Ghosn's ambition touched?

Carlos ghosn, the former chairman of Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance, didn't show his cards completely.

After fleeing Japan, Ghosn held his first press conference in Lebanon on June 8, 65438/KLOC-0. He kept his mouth shut about the process of his escape, repeatedly talked about the reasons for his departure, pointed his gun at the Japanese judicial system and Nissan Motor Company, and sighed: "I am very clear about the future strategies of the three companies. Now that the alliance has collapsed, their profits have also fallen. I can't believe it.

Ghosn has been dragged away from his original life track for the past 400 days since he was arrested in Tokyo, Japan in 20 18 10. In the end, he staged a thrilling escape, regained the opportunity to speak to the media, and stressed on the spot that he was Nissan's savior rather than a cold-blooded and greedy dictator. His imprisonment was caused by a "conspiracy theory" initiated by Nissan and the Japanese government. He retaliated against the allegations of concealing income, CEO's reserve expenditure, the Versailles party celebrating its 15 anniversary, and secretly owning many properties around the world, and explained that he fled because he could not prove his innocence under the Japanese judicial system and he was wronged, so he could be treated fairly when he returned to Lebanon.

According to foreign media reports, Hirohito Nishikawa/Kloc-0, the former CEO of Nissan Motor Company, who sent Ghosn to prison, told reporters in Tokyo on the morning of October 9 that the real reason for Ghosn's escape was because he was afraid of being convicted. Ghosn mentioned at the press conference that an external director of Nissan Motor Company was "connected with the Japanese government" and said: "I don't have time to pay attention to the one-man show that violates the law and evades judicial trial."

Who is right and who is wrong, and whether Ghosn is guilty or not, all these are not short-term conclusions. The immediate reality is that the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance founded by Ghosn is affected. In addition, he had contact with Fiat Chrysler (hereinafter referred to as "FCA"), but was arrested before the negotiations ended. FCA signed a merger agreement with PSA Peugeot Citroen in February 20 19, and Renault and Nissan missed the opportunity to win the top enterprises in the automobile industry.

Whose interests have been touched?

As an international with Brazilian, Lebanese and French nationality, Ghosn is ambitious and has expanded his business map to borderless areas.

He has been in charge of Nissan and Renault for more than ten years, carrying a briefcase across eight time zones to go to work, but he didn't expect to meet an insurmountable hurdle one day. Previously, he turned many impossible things into reality in the automotive field. His most brilliant achievement was to save Nissan, which was on the verge of bankruptcy, and later founded the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance.

199, Renault acquired a 36.8% stake in Nissan for $5.4 billion, and formally signed the Renault-Nissan strategic alliance. Ghosn, then vice president of Renault Automobile, came to Nissan as the "captain of the fire brigade" and served as the chief operating officer of Nissan. It took Nissan only two years to turn a profit, and he became CEO of Nissan on 200 1. In 2005, he served as CEO of Renault, and since then he has been in charge of the Renault-Nissan alliance for more than ten years.

Under the leadership of Ghosn, who is known as the "cost killer", the Renault-Nissan alliance is thriving. In order to further expand the scale and save costs, Ghosn made a new move on 20 16, and Nissan acquired Mitsubishi Motors, thus joining Mitsubishi in the alliance. In order to become the chairman of Mitsubishi Motors and the chairman of Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance, Ghosn had to make time in April 20 17 to cede the position of CEO of Nissan to Nishikawa Hiroshi, which was the first time that the management right of Nissan returned to the Japanese in 18.

However, Nissan executives headed by Hirohito Nishikawa reported Ghosn's crimes on 20 18. Ghosn pointed out at the press conference of 65438+10.8 that the reasons for the four indictments were totally libel and conspiracy. The reasons are as follows: On the one hand, when he no longer served as CEO of Nissan, Nissan's performance began to decline on 20 18; On the other hand, the French government hopes to increase Renault's equity and shareholding ratio in Nissan, which makes Japan unhappy. Moreover, Renault proposed to let Ghosn return to Nissan. Ghosn thought he was the best person to get the company out of trouble and accepted Renault's suggestion, which caused trouble.

"If Nissan feels that they don't want the French to tell me what to do, the best way is to drive me away. In fact, during Nissan's work, Renault did not have much influence and always gave Nissan a high degree of autonomy, but Nissan did not feel this way and never reached an agreement. " ? Ghosn said at the press conference.

1. auto channel learned from the Tokyo Stock Exchange and other channels that Renault holds 43.4% of Nissan's shares and is the largest shareholder of Nissan; In Renault's shareholding structure, Nissan Motor Company and the French government each hold 65,438+05% shares and become major shareholders. In addition, Nissan holds a 34% stake in Mitsubishi Motors and is the major shareholder of Mitsubishi Motors. In 20 18, Nissan sold 5.8 million cars, higher than Renault's 3.8 million, making it the biggest contributor to the triangle alliance.

A person in charge of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association told the First auto channel reporter that compared with Renault's shareholding in Nissan, Nissan's influence in Renault is far less than that of the French government holding the same shares, and it is basically difficult to give play to its own opinions, so its influence is extremely limited.

It is worth noting that in the cross-shareholding between Renault and Nissan, Renault has the right to vote on Nissan, while Nissan has no right to vote on Renault. This unequal relationship makes Nissan executives think that Nissan has given the company's profits to the French government in vain and needs to increase the equity control of Renault to reverse the unequal relationship. This move was opposed by the French government and aroused the vigilance of the French side, which realized that it was necessary to further consolidate its control over the Nissan-Renault-Mitsubishi alliance.

French President Macron came to power in May 20 17, and he is eager to find a new engine to revitalize the French economy. 2065438+At the beginning of 2008, the French government, as the largest shareholder of Renault, supported Ghosn to be re-elected as CEO of Renault. In exchange, Ghosn wants to promote the merger of Renault and Nissan. When the news reached Japan, Ghosn immediately changed from "the savior of Nissan" to "the invader of Japanese automobile industry", and opposed Ghosn's merger plan to the height of "defending Japanese automobile industry" within Nissan.

2065438+April 2008, Ghosn announced plans to adjust the capital relationship between Nissan and Renault and fully integrate the business of the two companies. This move triggered a counterattack by Nissan executives, and Japanese government forces even intervened. At this press conference, when asked by reporters whether to suggest that Nissan merge with other companies, Ghosn's answer was: "Different brands have different headquarters and only one management committee. This is not a merger. I tried to eliminate the idea of Japanese independence and the idea of French merger, and now it is completely retrogressive. "

Regardless of whether Ghosn led the merger at that time, sitting in the special position of chairman of Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance doomed him to fidget, behind which was the game and dark war between Japan and France in the automobile industry.

The alliance lost its development opportunities.

Nissan took the lead and pulled Ghosn down from the position of alliance leader on charges of concealing income and misappropriating funds. During Ghosn's detention in Japan, Renault also abandoned Ghosn and fired Ghosn through the board of directors. However, Ghosn returned to the rivers and lakes this time, refused to comment on Renault as the protagonist at the press conference, and resolutely denounced Nissan and the Japanese judicial system. Hiroyuki Ichiro, Ghosn's lawyer in Japan, said in an exclusive interview with First auto channel that it is Japan's backward judicial system and the "opacity" of Nissan's internal investigation that have become the key factors affecting Ghosn's case.

At present, Ghosn, who has become a fugitive, still finds it difficult to prove his innocence. According to the statement issued by Nissan's global headquarters on October 7th, 65438/KLOC-0, Ghosn's misrepresentation of salary, misappropriation of public funds and other misconduct are conclusive.

Ghosn's huge Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance has also fallen into an unprecedented passive situation. Previously, the Renault-Nissan Alliance, which Mitsubishi has not yet joined, saved 4.3 billion euros through synergy in 20 15 years, an increase of 13% over 20 14 years, and achieved the established goals set by the alliance one year ahead of schedule. The achievement of the goal is mainly attributed to the outstanding performance of Synergy in three fields: procurement, engineering design and manufacturing. 20 17 Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance released "alliance? According to the "2022" plan, it is planned that by 2022, the alliance will achieve the goal of selling more than 65.438+0.4 million vehicles, increasing its operating income to $240 billion, and doubling its collaborative cost saving to € 65.438+0 billion.

After Ghosn was arrested, Nissan issued a statement on March 20 19, stating that the "Triangle Alliance" would not be dissolved, and the three parties agreed to form a "brand-new" alliance cooperation model on the basis of the existing alliance structure.

Tsukiichi Oshima, a Japanese legal person, said in an interview with the First auto channel reporter that Ghosn explained the charges surrounding him at his press conference, but some problems remained unresolved, the amount of evidence was still less than that of Nissan and the prosecution, and some charges remained unexplained. At the same time, the Japanese prosecutor also made it clear that he would continue to pursue responsibility. "From the content of the current conference, it is obvious that Ghosn has been difficult to return to Nissan and the Triangle Alliance. Although Nissan has issued a statement that it will not dissolve the alliance, as the most important link connecting the three companies, Ghosn withdrew, and it is difficult to find a head who can be accepted by all three parties at the same time. Therefore, even if the alliance continues to exist, its influence will be greatly reduced. Many alliances initiated by Ghosn involve global integration policies, which will be reduced or cancelled, and the independent voice of the three companies will be further expanded. " ? Oshima Yueyi thinks so.

Kim Tae-nien, chairman of Korea Automobile Industry Association, told First auto channel that Ghosn's "Triangle Alliance" not only affected Japan, but also the global automobile industry including China and South Korea. Triangular alliance is a "very special" experiment. Ghosn promotes a mechanism covering the global structure of the three companies. Although it is an alliance, but at the same time keep the three companies operating independently, the alliance basically depends on Ghosn at the helm. In addition, the cultural differences between East Asia and the West have also become an important reason for the stability of buildings.

After the Ghosn incident, the trust between the triangular alliances has dropped to freezing point. Or as Ghosn said, now the alliance has collapsed.

This article comes from car home, the author of the car manufacturer, and does not represent car home's position.