by Gilles Guillaume
PARIS (Reuters) – Renault has appointed the management of its heat engine entity “Horse”, which it will split from the rest of the group in a joint venture with Chinese Geely, and should establish it in Madrid starting next summer, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
The entity, which will be headed by Patrice Haettel, hitherto director of industrial strategy and engineering for the diamond group, is part of Renault’s ambitious strategic plan aimed at bolstering the financial resources of its historic activity. thermal engines and to develop at the same time an entity dedicated to electric vehicles, “Ampère”.
“Horse” is expected to be based in Spain, where Renault has its main hub for hybrid powertrains. The management of the JV with Geely, which will also host oil group Saudi Aramco, is meanwhile still in the works and is expected to be based in London, the sources added.
Renault has also announced several nominations for Ampere on the intranet, the sources said, a sign that the project is moving forward, albeit on a longer schedule.
Luca de Meo, managing director of Renault, has been named “project leader” while waiting to officially take the helm of the activity called to embody the future of the group. Philippe Brunet will lead the entity’s hardware engineering – platforms and engines – and Thierry Cammal the software engineering.
“Ampère”, which could be listed on the stock market at the end of the year if market conditions allow it, should also welcome the two Japanese partners Nissan and Mitsubishi, as well as the American Qualcomm. According to one of the sources, Renault management was in Silicon Valley last week to meet with the group’s American partner in semiconductors, as well as Google, with which Renault is associated for infotainment and the design of future vehicles.
(Gilles Guillaume, editing by Kate Entringer)
©2023 Thomson Reuters, all rights reserved. Reuters content is the intellectual property of Thomson Reuters or its third party content providers. Any copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters. Thomson Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. “Reuters” and the Reuters Logo are trademarks of Thomson Reuters and its affiliated companies.