Collapse of car mega-merger poses headache for France’s Macron
The Macron administration in France was forced to firefight today as it was accused of scuppering a multi-billion euro deal between Fiat Chrysler and Renault.
A source close to Fiat Chrysler (FCA) today blamed the French government for succumbing to domestic pressures.
It presents a headache for Emmanuel Macron, who won a presidential run in 2017 on a largely pro-business platform.
But his government, whose 15 per cent makes it the largest single shareholder in Renault, broke FCA’s patience by asking for too many concessions.
“We remain open to any industrial consolidation opportunity, but without rushing in order to guarantee the industrial interests of Renault and the French nation,” finance minister Bruno Le Maire said today as the administration tried to save face.
The French government had sought reassurances that the new company would not lay off French workers. It also asked for dividends for Renault shareholders, sources told Reuters.
It took a hard line on redundancies after General Electric fired more than 1,000 workers, sparking public outcry.
The deal would have created the world’s third-largest carmaker. Fiat Chrysler saw the merger as a chance to buy Renault’s electric car technology and get around tougher new emissions targets.
It fell apart last night just 10 days after the first announcement.
FCA said “the political conditions in France do not currently exist for such a combination to proceed successfully.”
Le Maire said that France could not endorse the deal without Renault partner Nissan’s backing. Nissan, meanwhile, had previously said it would not cast its votes at a meeting of the Renault board.
And according to reports, one French official even called the chair of FCA, John Elkann, imploring him to reconsider. Elkann turned the official down.