The agreement comes as a lifeline for Nissan, which has been struggling financially as sales have faltered in recent years.
It’s a Christmas miracle for Nissan, as the struggling automaker looks to get some financial assistance following a newly confirmed merger with Honda. The two Japanese auto giants, along with Mitsubishi, today confirmed plans to team up. This comes after last week’s reports that predicated a merger. If the talks go through, the partnership would create the third-largest automaker in the world based on sales volume.
The talks arise as Nissan continues to struggle financially. The automaker confirmed last week that it would allow some Infiniti dealerships to merge with nearby Nissan stores in an effort to save on spending. The company has also previously announced its intent to reduce its workforce and restructure its corporate layout, while CEO Makoto Uchida reduced his salary by 50 percent.
Uchida marked today’s announcement by saying in a press release, “We anticipate that if this integration comes to fruition, we will be able to deliver even greater value to a wider customer base.”
Over the next six months, the automakers will discuss merging their operations under a single holding company, with the goal of completing the merger by August 2026. Honda’s chief executive Toshihiro Mibe said that the companies have decided they can better navigate the changing industry together.
“At this time of change in the automobile industry, which is said to occur once every 100 years, we hope that Mitsubishi Motors’ participation in the business integration discussions of Nissan and Honda will lead to further social change, and that we will be able to become a leading company in creating new value in mobility through business integration,” he said.
