Automotive Exports December 2022

Renault unveils
major revamp,
internalcombustion
JV
with Geely
French automaker Renault announced
a major reorganization, splitting its
operations into a new electric vehicle unit
and a separate internal combustion engine
division with China’s Geely.
The flagship division of its revamp, electric
vehicle and software entity Ampere, was
being prepared for an initial public offering
(IPO) on the Euronext Paris in the latter
half of next year at the earliest, it said in a
statement.
The new entity will employ around 10,000
staff in France and produce the R5 and 4L
electric vehicles in the north of the country,
the carmaker said as it outlined the revamp
for investors.
The electric vehicle market is expected to
grow rapidly in response to consumers’
worries about climate change, putting
pressure on manufacturers to develop less
polluting products.
The European Union agreed to phase out
new carbon dioxide-emitting vehicles
by 2035, a move set to turbo-charge the
production of electric prototypes on the
continent.
Renault said it plans to invite investment
in Ampere but would remain the majority
shareholder with “the support of potential
strategic cornerstone investors.”
Renault also intends to combine its
technological, manufacturing and research
and development activities for its hybrid
and internal-combustion vehicles with
Chinese automaker Geely in a new entity,
“Horse.”
The groups will share the division to design,
develop, produce and sell components and
systems for hybrid and internal-combustion
vehicles, employing 19,000 people at 17
powertrain factories and three research
and development hubs across Europe,
China and South America.
In 2020, Renault suffered a historic loss
and its recovery was destabilized by its
withdrawal from Russia following Moscow’s
invasion of Ukraine. The value of traditional
car manufacturers pales in comparison to
new players on the market specializing in
electric vehicles such as Elon Musk’s Tesla
or Chinese firm BYD.
Renault still needs a large investment
to accelerate its electric transformation
according to plans it presented in 2020.
U.S. giant Ford has taken similar steps,
announcing the the “Ford Model E”
earlier this year. The announcement
comes as the sales of traditional internalcombustion
vehicles fall. In the first nine
months of 2022, hybrid and electric
vehicles represented 38% of the brand’s
registrations in Europe, a year-on-year
increase of 12%.
The separation of Renault’s activities
has concerned trade unions after several
waves of job cuts. Investors expressed their
interest in Renault’s transformation, with
the group’s stock value climbing 3.77% on
the Paris stock market.
December 2022 68