Renault and Nissan announced a new investment of Rs 5,300 crore in the Indian market, which will be used primarily to launch six new locally produced models between the two brands, as we had previously reported exclusively.
The six models would basically be made up of three brand-new cars, each with a sibling product under the other partner brand. Speaking at the announcement, Ashwani Gupta, director and chief operating officer of Nissan and a member of the alliance board, emphasised that while the models from the two brands would overlap within the segment, they would be very different from one another. Cross badges are no longer used by us. All six cars, like the Magnite and Kiger, will be very specific to each brand and have a distinct identity, according to Gupta.
Expanding its lineup in India is Renault-Nissan
Gupta did not provide any model names, but he did reveal that the EVs would be in the A-segment and the SUVs would be in the C and higher C-segments. The CMF-B platform and the electric CMF-A were recently brought to India, according to the company.
The new Duster and a larger seven-seat version of it will both ride on the CMF-B platform, while the electric Kwid EV will be built on the CMF-A platform. Since the CMF-B platform and the electric components of the CMF-A platform would compete with well-known and heavily localised products from companies like Tata Motors and Hyundai, among others, both would need to be heavily localised.
The ICE SUVs and the two EVs’ technical specifications were both left out by the manufacturer. But Gupta did say this about the ICE SUVs: “These platforms are compatible with every kind of powertrain that we want to do in the segments. We are currently concentrating on ICE for the C-segment and EV for the A-segment, but we may add e-tech or e-power in the future. The brand’s range extender technology is known as e-power, and hybrid power is referred to as e-tech.
Investment by Renault and Nissan in India: CBU play
The majority of this investment will go towards localization, but it will take a long time to accomplish this; according to Gupta, the first of these models won’t be available until 2025. Although it will be a while, the company is optimistic that customers and their dealers will react favourably because they have already shown a lot of love for the Magnite, the only model in its stable.
New Alliance Organization
The two businesses will also change their shareholding arrangements as a result of the investment. The new framework agreement will change the ownership of Renault Nissan Automotive India Private Ltd (RNAIPL) from a 70:30 equity holding to 51 percent Nissan and 49 percent Renault. Additionally, the ownership of the Renault Nissan Technology Business Centre (RNTBCI) will change to a 51 percent Renault and 49 percent Nissan split.
With the announcement made today, the company will be able to increase its R&D efforts in India and assist in converting its Chennai plant to 100% renewable energy by 2045. The business also announced that it would add up to 2,000 new jobs to support the new projects.
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