Nissan’s incoming CEO Ivan Espinosa is open to pursing a partnership with Honda, even after talks for a historic tie-up between the firms abruptly fell apart last month.
The auto industry’s push into intelligent cars "is going to require a lot of work and a lot of investment that probably will need some partner,” said Espinosa, who will assume his new role on April 1. "I’m open to Honda or other partners as long as these partners are helping us drive the vision of the business.”
Espinosa, who currently serves as Nissan’s chief planning officer, takes the helm at a critical time for the company. The collapse of talks for an agreement to combine with Honda under a single holding company — a deal that would have created one of the world’s biggest carmakers — has left the struggling manufacturer in need of a lifeline. Top of Espinosa’s to-do list will be to seek out collaborations to develop electric vehicles and technologies, part of a push to refresh the aging product lineup that’s behind the slump in sales.
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