Collaboration Between Daimler and Renault-Nissan Advances Globally, CEOs Say

FRANKFURT, Germany, Sept. 12, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

• Portfolio of jointly developed major projects has jumped from three to ten
• Nissan and Daimler have completed factory building for the joint production of engines in the USA

The chief executives of the Renault-Nissan Alliance and Daimler AG said today that their companies' partnership is advancing quickly, and the scope of the collaboration is increasingly global.

The French-Japanese-German partnership began in April 2010, with three "pillar projects" primarily focused on Europe. Since then, the portfolio has increased to ten significant projects, including major initiatives from North America to Japan. In addition, relevant business units are working together in best-practice sharing and other forms of cooperation.

"While our initial collaboration focused strongly on European projects, we are now focusing on synergies in all key markets," Renault-Nissan Chairman and CEO Carlos Ghosn said today at an annual media briefing on the partnership. "The largest economies of scale are always global."

"We will continue to seek out new projects together that make sense for all partners and, most importantly, our customers," Daimler CEO and Head of Mercedes Benz Cars Dieter Zetsche said.

The CEOs cited the joint production of Mercedes-Benz four-cylinder gasoline engines in Decherd (Tennessee, USA) as a good example of how the partners profit from the cooperation. Just one and a half years after the groundbreaking in May 2012, the factory building for the joint production of Mercedes-Benz four-cylinder gasoline engines is now complete. Production machinery is now being installed and the start of production is planned for mid-2014. The engines produced in Decherd will then be used in the Mercedes-Benz C-Class, which is produced at the Daimler plant in Tuscaloosa (Alabama, USA), and in new Infiniti products.

Joint development work is also proceeding on schedule for a new family of shared three- and four-cylinder gasoline engines with turbocharging and direct fuel injection. The engines will make use of the latest technology and will have significantly improved fuel consumption.

For the full release, go to: http://www.media.blog.alliance-renault-nissan.com/news/4456