Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA), the merger hungry carmaker that exited negotiations with Renault less than half a year ago, is at it again. This time, the target is Renault’s French rival, the PSA Group that makes Peugeot, Citroen and Opel/Vauxhall cars. Earlier this year, there were rumours of PSA and Jaguar Land Rover hooking up, but nothing came out of that. Automotive swingers.
Anyway, unlike the daily drama of the FCA-Renault talks, the courtship has been swift and silent this time around. The rumours of the two carmakers in talks are still very fresh, but according to CNBC, the PSA board has already approved the merger and the FCA board is set to meet Wednesday (US time). Executives have already briefed regulators in the US and France, the Wall Street Journal reported.
The target here is to form the world’s fourth-largest automaker with a roughly US$50 billion valuation. According to WSJ, PSA CEO Carlos Tavares is expected to lead the combined automaker as CEO, while FCA chairman John Elkann will assume the same role with the combined company. In this “all-share merger of equals,” PSA will have six board seats and FCA five, the report adds.
For now, there’s no comment from both parties other than PSA’s confirmation that there’s “ongoing discussions aiming at creating one of the world’s leading automotive groups.”
FCA, itself created from a merger between Italy’s Fiat and America’s Chrysler – which was part of an unsuccessful marriage with Daimler – seems to be desperate to fulfil the the merger dreams of its late boss, the former CEO Sergio Marchionne, who was a firm believer of combining strengths for cost savings and scale.
A tie-up with PSA would give FCA access to the former’s platforms and tech (which are more advanced), while Peugeot could re-enter the American market after a long hiatus. It would also boost the size and scale of PSA’s European car business, which absorbed GM’s Opel/Vauxhall in 2017.
There’s sure to be an update on this developing story by tomorrow, stay tuned.
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