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Alliance discussions start today for GM, Nissan bosses
By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published July 14, 2006
DETROIT - When the two guys who run General Motors, Renault and Nissan sit down together today, they'll focus on how linking the companies could save money and make them more competitive across the globe. On the eve of the historic meeting between Carlos Ghosn, the star chief executive of Renault SA and Nissan Motor Corp., and Rick Wagoner, the steady chairman of General Motors Corp., both men said they'll look at synergies that could be achieved with an alliance of the French, Japanese and U.S. automakers. While Ghosn and Wagoner will discuss the bigger picture, the real work of crunching numbers to quantify those synergies likely will take until the end of the year, Ghosn said Thursday. "How can we quantify what's at stake? What's the prize?" Ghosn asked. Today's private meeting, at an undisclosed location, could be the start of historic change in the auto industry, with Renault and Nissan taking large stakes in the world's biggest automaker. Such an alliance could lead to a struggle for the top job at GM, but Ghosn said he cannot run another company and keep his current posts. Ghosn sidestepped a question about whether he wanted to run GM. "I'm saying categorically it's out of question that I'll add on top of my two present responsibilities, which is being CEO of Renault and Nissan, another one," he said. Ghosn said during an interview on CNBC's show Closing Bell that he and Wagoner probably will meet one-on-one, with experts from both companies then working on the numbers. His comments came during a flurry of interviews he gave in New York as he traveled to his meeting with Wagoner, who also talked to reporters Thursday in Washington. Wagoner focused on looking at the potential benefits of the alliance, and he stressed that GM still must focus on cutting costs and making products. "We cannot divert attention from executing our turnaround plan," Wagoner said. GM, which lost $10.6-billion last year and is in the midst of a major downsizing, has a lot on its plate, Wagoner said, including completing the sale of a 51 percent stake in its financial arm, General Motors Acceptance Corp., and forging a labor cost reduction deal involving its largest supplier, Delphi Corp., and its unions.
[Last modified July 14, 2006, 01:17:17]
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