TOKYO, Feb 6 (Reuters) – Nissan is open to working with new partners after merger talks with Honda foundered, two people familiar with its thinking said on Thursday, with Taiwan’s Foxconn seen as one candidate.
The struggling Japanese automaker is again at a crossroads after backing out of negotiations with bigger rival Honda to create the world’s No. 3 automaker, a deal that would have been the latest major change in the shifting global car industry.
Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida met with Honda counterpart Toshihiro Mibe earlier on Thursday to say he wanted to end the discussions after Honda proposed making Nissan a subsidiary, according to a third person, who had knowledge of the matter.
All three people declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the topic.
Nissan is now open to working with new partners, including technology companies, as it looks to navigate the technological upheaval brought by electric vehicles, software-driven cars and new, fast-moving Chinese manufacturers, the two people familiar with its thinking said.
It was also open to working with Taiwan’s Foxconn, the world’s largest contract electronics maker, one of them said.
Foxconn, which manufactures Apple’s iPhones and has been seeking to expand its nascent EV contract manufacturing business, approached Nissan about a bid but was rejected by the carmaker, Reuters reported in December.
Foxconn’s EV business is led by a former Nissan senior executive, Jun Seki, who was once seen as a contender to become the automaker’s CEO, before the job went to current boss Uchida.
Honda and Nissan in December signed a memorandum of understanding to discuss an integration under a holding company.
But the talks have been complicated by growing differences, multiple people familiar with the matter have told Reuters, and hit a wall after Honda said it wanted to turn Nissan into a subsidiary.
PHOTO CAPTION:
Makoto Uchida, Director, Representative Executive Officer, President and CEO of Nissan Motor Corporation holds a joint press conference on their merger talks last December, 2024.
