Renault and Nissan deepen alliance with shared platform and EV plans

15 September 2017 Renault and Nissan have deepened their alliance with plans to share more vehicle platforms and powertrains while developing and launching electric vehicles (EVs) together. The companies are also bringing Japanese manufacturer Mitsubishi further into the alliance. Under its Alliance 2022 plan, the company aims to become a leader in electrification and build on its current position as the world’s largest manufacturer. Under the plans, the group aims to have more than nine million vehicles sharing four common platforms. The plan will also extend the use of common powertrains to 75% of total sales. Carlos Ghosn, chairman and chief executive officer of the Alliance, said: ′Today marks a new milestone for our member companies. By the end of our strategic plan Alliance 2022, we aim to double our annual synergies to €10 billion. To achieve this target, on one side Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors will accelerate collaboration on common platforms, powertrains and next-generation electric, autonomous and connected technologies. From the other side, synergies will be enhanced by our growing scale. Our total annual sales are forecast to exceed 14 million units, generating revenues expected at $240 billion (€200 billion) by the end of the plan.’ Meanwhile, as the group continues to develop EVs, they will build a new platform that will underpin the next generation of Nissan Leaf and Renault Zoe, while also developing 12 new models across the brands. These will include vehicles built on a new B-segment platform for mid-size vehicles, which will add to the alliance’s current Common Module Family (CMF). By 2022, the alliance aims to build more than nine million vehicles on four common platforms, up from two million vehicles on two platforms in 2016. As more models are launched on the new platforms by Renault, Nissan, Mitsubishi and their other brands, shared architectures will account for 70% of sales by 2022, with common engines installed in 75%. Mitsubishi will also gain access to the group’s CMF for the first time, and will use common powertrains by 2020. The extension of the CMF follows the shared vehicle architecture by Renault and Nissan in recent years, which has included the use of common platforms and powertrains across a widening portfolio of vehicles including the Nissan Rogue, Qashqai and X-Trail, Renault Espace, Kadjar and Megane. The plan also mentions aims to deliver 40 vehicles with some form of autonomous driving technology, as well as the brands becoming an operator of robo-ride hailing services, a move that pre-empts any change in vehicle ownership models with the introduction of driverless vehicles. The Alliance 2022 plan will also allow the group to double its cost saving measures, with closer integration leading to a target of €10 billion being recouped by the end of the six-year plan. Ghosn concludes: ′This plan will boost the growth and profitability of our member companies. We intend to deliver on growing synergies, with three autonomous companies cooperating with the efficiency of one. The Alliance has grown and performed with two members since 1999. With Alliance 2022, we will prove that we will grow and perform with three companies or more.’ In order to highlight the improved integration, and the including of Mitsubishi into the Alliance, the group has also launched a new logo, to give a clear brand definition. Photograph courtesy of Renault Nissan Alliance