Latest news with #IvanEspinosa
Miami Herald
a day ago
- Automotive
- Miami Herald
The $700 Million Question: Why Nissan Is Selling Its Iconic Yokohama Headquarters
A report from Nikkei Asia citing sources familiar with the matter states that Nissan is considering selling its global headquarters in Yokohama, south of Tokyo, Japan, valued at over 100 billion yen ($698 million), by March 2026. Nissan would use the money to help cover restructuring costs associated with cutting its seven plants and cutting around 20,000 jobs. The automaker is expected to incur an additional 60 billion ($415.6 million) yen in restructuring costs for the current financial year, according to a Q&A session with the company and analysts on May 13. "We plan to cover the restructuring costs through asset sales," CEO Ivan Espinosa said, according to Nikkei Asia. Due to pending restructuring costs and U.S. tariff impacts, Nissan hasn't yet released an earnings forecast for the year. Nissan is ailing after suffering a $4.5 billion loss last year, and current market conditions aren't helping its prospects. Two of the seven factories Nissan is closing are domestic sites, with indicators that the Oppama and Shonan plants are on the chopping block, according to Motor1. The Tochigi facility isn't being targeted because of its test course, which is vital for vehicle development. Nissan is also axing some new vehicles along with six platforms, leaving the company with seven platforms, down from 13. Autoguide reports that the manufacturer is simplifying vehicle architectures to reduce parts complexity by 70% using reassigned members from its research and development department. Nissan states that its recovery plan, named Re:Nissan, targets savings of more than $3 billion to return to profitability by the 2026 fiscal year. Nissan's headquarters have been in Yokohama since 2009, when it moved from Tokyo's Ginza district. Nissan told Autoblog that it's "considering all possibilities to recover its business performance, but there are no specifics to share at this time." "In the face of challenging FY24 performance and rising variable costs, compounded by an uncertain environment, we must prioritize self-improvement with greater urgency and speed, aiming for profitability that relies less on volume. As new management, we are taking a prudent approach to reassess our targets and actively seek every possible opportunity to implement and ensure a robust recovery," said Nissan CEO Ivan Espinosa. While Nissan may sell its Yokohama, Japan headquarters, there's a good chance it'll lease back the space, similar to what McLaren did in 2021 to reduce debt. McLaren will continue using its Woking, England headquarters through at least 2041. The move might prove wise given that Nissan could make around $700 million and essentially stay put through signing a sale-and-leaseback deal, but we'll have to see how their other plans pan out. Copyright 2025 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
The Irish Sun
2 days ago
- Automotive
- The Irish Sun
Major car firm ‘discontinuing cheapest model & halting pay rises' – weeks after axing 20,000 jobs and £4bn losses
A MAJOR car firm is reportedly discontinuing its cheapest model and halting pay rises just weeks after announcing £4billion in losses. The struggling car maker had announced plans to due to soaring production costs and disappointing sales. 2 The Japanese automaker has been struggling financially recently Credit: Getty 2 Cost-cutting measures will already see thousands of job losses with multiple factory closures Credit: AFP Cash-strapped Nissan , Japan's third-largest carmaker, is already facing billions in losses - its worst annual loss in a quarter century. Nissan is Now, the company has started offering buyouts to US workers and has suspended merit-based wage increases worldwide, reports Reuters. As part of the cuts, Nissan has offered separation packages to workers at its Canton plant in Mississippi. Read More in Motors Salaried workers in human resources, planning, information technology and finance have also been offered similar packages. Merit-based pay increases have also been suspended worldwide by Nissan for the current business year, in a separate email seen by Reuters. Christian Meunier, Nissan America's chairman, said the buyouts are 'crucial for Nissan's comeback' in the US, its most important market. 'While substantial efforts have been made in the US to help right-size Nissan, we need to take additional, limited, strategic action here at a local level,' Meunier said in an email. Most read in Motors And Nissan has also discontinued its cheapest model, the manual-equipped Versa, according to reports. The Japanese automaker halted making the Versa with the five-speed manual at its Aguascalientes, Mexico, factory, according to The publication stated that a "person with knowledge of the matter" revealed that the most affordable new car on the market would see "production cease". It is understood that the rest of the Versa lineup will continue as usual but this is yet another huge blow to the carmaker. Japanese giant unveils its new bargain EV with quirky 'bug eye' headlights It comes after reports the manufacturer is planning to cut its number of factories from 17 down to 10. This has prompted fears that the brand's Sunderland factory could be under threat. While Nissan has not confirmed the fate of its only UK factory, its CEO Ivan Espinosa has insisted that It is hoped that the £1billion loan from The huge cash injection is just a fifth of the 1Trillion Yen needed by the company to survive. It will also look to issue as much as 630billion yen in convertible securities and bonds, including high-yield and euro notes. Reportedly, the firm is looking to Finally, the struggling car manufacturer is eyeing a sale of its stakes in Renault and battery maker AESC Group. The aggressive fundraising plans underscore Nissan's rapidly deteriorating financial and operational position, despite efforts by newly appointed chief executive Ivan Espinosa to turn the company around. Development on other Work on all 'advanced and post-FY26 product activities' has been paused, though Nissan has not confirmed which particular vehicles will face suspension.
The Citizen
2 days ago
- Automotive
- The Citizen
Indian pre-production of first South Africa-bound new Nissan starts
Confirmed for arrival in 2026, the first of two new SUVs will be based on existing Renault products assembled at Chennai Plant now wholly owned by the French brand. The first of two new Renault-based Nissan SUV will arrive in 2026. Both have been confirmed for South Africa. Image: Nissan With speculation continuing to grow about Nissan's alleged closing of its Rosslyn Plant outside Pretoria, the automaker has indicated that two of its three products bound for India have entered pre-production ahead of their market reveals next year. Nissan by Renault Teased back in March as part of its restructuring process that saw Ivan Espinosa replace Makoto Uchida as CEO, the initial pair of models consist of a Nissan-badged version of the Renault Triber and a restyled take on the new Duster. Not shown in the mentioned images, the incoming third model will use the Dacia Bigster as a base and could replace the X-Trail as a more affordable option in select developing markets. ALSO READ: Reports claim Rosslyn to be one of Nissan's plants facing closure A facility that had been of Nissan's biggest outside Japan and even North America, the plant currently produces the Kiger and Triber, as well as the Magnite for 65 markets in both right-and-left-hand-drive. In addition, it will soon produce the Duster currently made in Romania and Turkey, and by extension, the mentioned Nissan model. Plans for India Addressing Nissan's supposed market exit, Vatsa told Autocar India, 'I am also happy to say that all our product plans are on track and well underway and, in fact, pre-production of our upcoming B-MPV and C-SUV has already begun at the Renault plant in Chennai. 'Reports of our exit are all untrue, and there is no reason for us to exit. As you can see from our continued development of the Magnite and the new products planned, we are not pulling back from anything'. Nissan-badged version of the Renault Triber will go on-sale in India next year. Image: Nissan Confirming the Triber-based model as debuting in the first quarter of next year, Vatsa stated that the Duster underpinned model, which could revive the Terrano name used on a rebadged version of the original, would make its unveiling in mid-2026 and go on-sale soon after. Although sold exclusively with five-seats in Europe, Vatsa remarked that the Bigster derived Nissan, which will also become Chennai-assembled Renault, will be engineered from the start to have seven-seats as opposed to being a '5+2' model. Accordingly, this model will debut in 2027, suggesting the Renault version as either becoming a reality in late 2026 or early the next year ahead of the Nissan. Made in India for South Africa More significantly, both SUVs have received approval for South Africa, the former set to replace the Qashqai that quietly departed the local market last year. '[These] products will be Nissan's answer to the Chinese competition in South Africa. We believe [India] is a good source to bring competitive and technologically advanced to market,' Nissan Managing Director for South Africa and Independent African Markets, Maciej Klenkiewicz, told the media at the unveiling of the facelift Magnite in Cape Town last year. Dacia Bigster will become a Renault once production kicks-off in India. A local market debut is anticipated to happen either in 2026 or 2027. Image: Dacia A line-up also set to include the all-new Y63 Patrol in 2026, the alleged closure of Rosslyn, which currently only produces the Navara for South Africa and Sub-Saharan African markets, has so far not been commented on as one of the seven plants facing closure. This comes after the announcement of the Re:Nissan strategy by Espinosa that would see a reduction in production facilities from 17 to 10 and lead to job cuts of 20 000 on top of the 9 000 announced last year. Uncertain future Locally, the Rosslyn Plant, which has been in operation since 1966, employees an estimated 1 200 workers, which had been reduced by 400 in 2023 following the discontinuation of the NP200 and the shelving of its almost finished successor due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. As it stands, Nissan South Africa has so far remained mum on the reported closing of Rosslyn, though, expectations are that an official an official announcement will be made in due course. NOW READ: New Patrol coming as Nissan releases fresh details for South Africa
Scottish Sun
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Scottish Sun
Iconic carmaker thrown £1BILLION lifeline after axing 20k staff as fears grow over future of UK's biggest motor factory
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) AN ICONIC carmaker has been thrown a £1billion lifeline from the UK Government. The struggling car maker had announced plans to axe over 20,000 members of staff due to soaring production costs and disappointing sales. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 2 An iconic carmaker is on an urgent mission to save £5 billion Credit: Getty 2 Over 20,000 jobs could be cut as part of the brand's bid to save cash Credit: AFP Nissan is looking to raise £5.2billion to stay afloat, with UK Export Finance underwriting a £1billion loan - which will support the beleaguered company. The manufacturer is planning to cut its number of factories from 17 down to 10. This has prompted fears that the brand's Sunderland factory could be under threat. While Nissan has not confirmed the fate of its only UK factory, its CEO Ivan Espinosa has insisted that more electric cars will be produced there. It is hoped that the £1billion loan from Nissan's lenders, underwritten by The Government, will protect the site. The huge cash injection is just a fifth of the 1Trillion Yen needed by the company to survive. It will also look to issue as much as 630billion yen in convertible securities and bonds, including high-yield and euro notes. Reportedly, the firm is looking to sell-and-lease-back its Yokohama headquarters alongside several properties in the United States. The Yokohama site is valued at £500 million and was first opened in 2009. It has 22 floors and a glitzy gallery, along with thousands of workers who use the site every day. Japanese giant unveils its new bargain EV with quirky 'bug eye' headlights Finally, the struggling car manufacturer is eyeing a sale of its stakes in Renault and battery maker AESC Group. Mr Espinosa has commented in the past on Nissan's urgent cost-cutting mission. He said: 'In the face of challenging full-year 2024 performance and rising variable costs compounded by an uncertain environment, we must prioritise self-improvement with greater urgency and speed, aiming for profitability that relies less on volume." He added: 'As new management, we are taking a prudent approach to reassess our targets and actively seek every possible opportunity to implement and ensure a robust recovery.' Development on some Nissan models has been paused, whilst the company tries to balance its books. Work on all 'advanced and post-FY26 product activities' has been paused, though Nissan has not confirmed which particular vehicles will face suspension. Mr Espinosa has previously issued a full statement about Nissan's financial woes. He said: "This is not something that happened in the last couple of years. "It's more of a fundamental problem that probably started back in 2015, when management thought this company could reach [annual global vehicle sales] of around eight million. "There were heavy investments both in terms of planned capacity as well as in human resources, but the reality today is we are running at around half that volume. And nobody did anything to fix that until now.'
The Irish Sun
2 days ago
- Automotive
- The Irish Sun
Iconic carmaker thrown £1BILLION lifeline after axing 20k staff as fears grow over future of UK's biggest motor factory
AN ICONIC carmaker has been thrown a £1billion lifeline from the UK Government. The struggling car maker had announced plans to 2 An iconic carmaker is on an urgent mission to save £5 billion Credit: Getty 2 Over 20,000 jobs could be cut as part of the brand's bid to save cash Credit: AFP Nissan is The manufacturer is planning to cut its number of factories from 17 down to 10. This has prompted fears that the brand's Sunderland factory could be under threat. While Nissan has not confirmed the fate of its only UK factory, its CEO Ivan Espinosa has insisted that Read More on Car News It is hoped that the £1billion loan from The huge cash injection is just a fifth of the 1Trillion Yen needed by the company to survive. It will also look to issue as much as 630billion yen in convertible securities and bonds, including high-yield and euro notes. Reportedly, the firm is looking to Most read in Motors The Yokohama site is valued at £500 million and was first opened in 2009. It has 22 floors and a glitzy gallery, along with thousands of workers who use the site every day. Japanese giant unveils its new bargain EV with quirky 'bug eye' headlights Finally, the struggling car manufacturer is eyeing a sale of its stakes in Renault and battery maker AESC Group. He said: 'In the face of challenging full-year 2024 performance and rising variable costs compounded by an uncertain environment, we must prioritise self-improvement with greater urgency and speed, aiming for profitability that relies less on volume." He added: 'As new management, we are taking a prudent approach to reassess our targets and actively seek every possible opportunity to implement and ensure a robust recovery.' Development on some Work on all 'advanced and post-FY26 product activities' has been paused, though Nissan has not confirmed which particular vehicles will face suspension. Mr Espinosa has previously issued a full statement about Nissan's financial woes. He said: "This is not something that happened in the last couple of years. "It's more of a fundamental problem that probably started back in 2015, when management thought this company could reach [annual global vehicle sales] of around eight million. "There were heavy investments both in terms of planned capacity as well as in human resources, but the reality today is we are running at around half that volume. And nobody did anything to fix that until now.'
