Fiat Chrysler Automobiles Eyes Merger with Groupe Renault

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) is offering a merger proposal to Groupe Renault, that would give both parties equal shares.

If Renault approves the terms of the possible merger, this would make them the third largest global OEM only behind Toyota and Volkswagen--with 8.7 million vehicle sales and a strong market presence in key regions and vehicle segments.

In a statement, the FCA said that the two brands would also have a balanced governance structure, with the Board of Directors of the combined entity being composed of 11 members, "with the majority being independent and with equal representation of four members each for both FCA and Groupe Renault, as well as one nominee from Nissan."

The proposal laid out by FCA also offers a "broad and complementary brand portfolio that would provide full market coverage, from luxury to mainstream."

Based on the statement released, the "combined company would be a world leader in the rapidly changing automotive industry with a strong position in transforming technologies, including electrification and autonomous driving."

The combination would create a brand portfolio that would provide full market coverage with a presence in all key segments from luxury/premium brands, such as Maserati and Alfa Romeo, to the strong access brands of Dacia and Lada, and would include the well-known Fiat, Renault, Jeep, and Ram brands as well as commercial vehicles."

"Groupe Renault has a strong presence across Europe, Russia, Africa and Middle East, while FCA is uniquely positioned in the high margin segments in North America and is a market leader in Latin America. FCA's evolving capability in autonomous driving, which includes partnerships with Waymo, BMW and Aptiv, is complemented by Groupe Renault's decade of experience in EV technology where it is the highest selling EV OEM in Europe. Groupe Renault also has a well-established and profitable financing business (RCI Banque)," the FCA noted.

"On a simple aggregated basis of 2018 results, the combined company's annual revenues would be nearly EUR170 billion with operating profit of more than EUR10 billion and net profit of more than EUR8 billion," the FCA added.