PARIS — Renault and Nissan will make investments $600 million to spice up their operations in India, together with the deliberate launch of six new joint fashions.

The businesses described the funding as a place to begin that can create 2,000 further jobs in Chennai, the place the alliance has a manufacturing unit that builds vehicles for each automakers and an R&D middle, they stated Monday in a information launch.

The collaboration in India is one in every of 5 new tasks introduced by Renault and Nissan as a part of their rebalanced alliance, which was introduced earlier this month. Below the plan, every will maintain a 15 p.c cross-shareholding within the different, with full voting rights.

Below the earlier alliance construction, Renault held 43 p.c of Nissan, which in flip had 15 p.c of Renault, however no voting rights on Renault’s board. That was a unbroken supply of friction between the companions and led to months of negotiations that Renault CEO Luca de Meo described as “intense.” 

Learn extra: Renault-Nissan’s new alliance: key joint tasks

Nissan can even make investments as much as 15 p.c in Renault’s deliberate electrical automobile spinoff, Ampere.

Renault at the moment builds three most important fashions in India, all shorter than 4 meters lengthy to fulfill India’s taxation necessities: the Kwid, a minicar; the marginally bigger Kiger crossover; and the Triber, which is on the market with seven seats. 

Nissan primarily sells the Kicks, a small SUV, and the Magnite, which is carefully associated to the Kiger. 

The brand new fashions embody two full-electric minicars, which might be the primary for Renault and Nissan in India. Stellantis has lately began manufacturing of the full-electric New C3 minicar for India.

Different fashions embody 4 new compact SUVs. All new fashions will probably be engineered and in-built Chennai, the businesses stated, on widespread alliance platforms “whereas retaining the person, distinctive styling of the respective manufacturers.”

A key a part of the brand new technique is rising plant utilization to 80 p.c by means of exports, the businesses stated, with out offering extra particulars.

The businesses have additionally adjusted the possession construction of their Indian operations. Nissan will maintain a 51 p.c share of the Chennai manufacturing unit, with Renault holding 49 p.c. In flip, Renault could have 51 p.c of the R&D middle, and Nissan 49 p.c.

The Indian auto market has been dominated by Maruti Suzuki, which had 1,118,659 gross sales in 2022, far forward of No. 2 Hyundai, with 552,511 gross sales, in accordance with LMC Automotive. Renault ranked ninth with 87,118 gross sales, and Nissan was thirteenth, with 34,565 gross sales. Passenger automobile gross sales in India grew by 24 p.c in 2022 to three,997,996, LMC stated this month. 

India has surpassed Japan to grow to be the world’s third-largest light-vehicle market after China and the U.S, LMC stated. The analyst firm is forecasting progress of 6 p.c this 12 months, with gross sales reaching 5 million in 2027.