Renault’s Strategy to Compete in the Asian Auto Market

Renault CEO François Provost has claimed that its European manufacturing business is more well-positioned for success than its competitors in the Chinese auto market, even as rivals seek partnerships with fast-growing EV makers in Asia.

In an interview with the Financial Times, he said: “I think our manufacturing capabilities are among the best in the world. I would say even better than our Chinese competitors in terms of manufacturing efficiency.”

Recently, the auto company has substantially cut development cost and speed using Chinese supply chains. Under its new business strategy, it plans to develop all of its European models in under 24 months.

“The challenge is research and development, technology, speed, innovation,” Provost added. “That’s where we are catching up.”

Exploring options in the Chinese market

In late 2024, Renault set up its own engineering centre in China as part of its plan to learn from the country’s market and experiment with Asian supply chains during development.

Industry analysts have questioned if this decision will affect the use of its European supply chain, especially after its decision in April that it plans to cut 20% of its workforce over the next few years.

However, François states that the company will not cut European engineers in favour of Chinese ones.

“We will develop our European cars in Europe,” he said, adding that the planned cuts were part of a “transformation” of its engineering department, with plans to simplify processes and make each centre more lean.

According to industry experts, Rival Stellantis, the owner of Peugeot, has also held discussions with several Chinese carmakers about potentially partnering to come into underused plants, potentially benefiting Chinese carmakers looking to produce more vehicles in Europe.

In recent years, Renault has already been through several restructurings and cost cutting measures, leading to the closure of some of its factories based in France.

Under François’s predecessor Luca de Meo – the CEO of Kering – Renault began a brand reboot focused on electric cars, with some of its most recent models becoming bestsellers in France, such as the electric R5.

Partnerships with other global brands

As the brand weighs future strategies within the Asian market, Renault has sought out several partnerships with other global brands, including its longstanding alliance with Japanese manufacturer Nissan.

Renault’s partnership with Nissan has been in place since 1999 and sees each manufacturer owning a 15% stake in the other, with the two working together on vehicle development.

The company also forged a recent deal with Ford in December 2025 to co-develop EVs in Europe, while it also works with Geely in Brazil and South Korea.

Speaking to the Financial Times, Nissan CEO Ivan Espinosa said the Japanese company could expand its partnership with Renault to include new models for Europe.

“We’ve been working together for quite some time, we know each other well [...] and we’re trying to build more, because the value creation potential is quite big still,” he said.

While Renault is open to business collaborations, François says he does not envision any of the partnerships growing into a larger alliance.

He says that Renault is an independent company and that they “do not rely on anyone”. 

“We are capable to set a sustainable growth path for our company”, he adds. “I do not foresee a bigger co-operation [...] the project-by-project way is better than to consider any further type of consolidation.”