Senior Renault-Nissan Executive Quits And Moves To PSA Group

A senior executive from Renault-Nissan has abruptly left the car manufacturer and joined PSA Group.

Reuters reports that former Renault-Nissan Alliance director Arnaud Deboeuf will become PSA’s industrial strategy director under chief executive Carlos Tavares. He blames Renault boss Thierry Bollore for his unexpected exit.

“Thierry Bollore told me no one wanted to work with me … and that I could not go to work at Nissan either,” Deboeuf said in an email sent to colleagues.

It is reported that tensions within the Renault-Nissan Alliance have deepened following the arrest of former chairman Carlos Ghosn in November 2018 and the failed merger with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles in June.

Sources claim that Deboeuf’s relationship with Bollore soured following Ghosn’s arrest. It is believed that Deboeuf was offered a senior executive role at Nissan but Bollore blocked the move.

Renault and Nissan have been at loggerheads since the proposed merger with FCA fell through. The Japanese car manufacturer wants Renault to cut its 43.4 per cent stake in the company in order to get Nissan’s support for a tie-up with FCA. Renault is said to be resistant to do so and doesn’t want to cut its holding below a 33 per cent block minority.

One option said to be in the works is for Renault to immediately cut its stake in Nissan by a smaller amount but promising to reduce its stake further if the Japanese company meets key milestones.

Deboeuf’s move to PSA Group comes six years after current chief executive Carlos Tavares was snatched from Renault and hired to rescue the carmaker from the verge of bankruptcy.