Renault to appoint finance executives to board after Desmarest departure

Renault will work with insurance boss Thierry Derez to its board, sources informed Reuters, replacing senior director Thierry Desmarest, who resigned prior a crucial meeting on succession preparation for the automaker Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn.

Another finance executive, former Credit Suisse France CEO Pierre Fleuriot, will be selected to be succeed retiring director Marc Ladreit de Lacharriere, the sources stated.

Renault declined to talk about the appointments but confirmed previous Total CEO Desmarest’s exit, two days after it was reported by Reuters and Les Echos.

Desmarest will step down after the February 15 meeting at which Ghosn is seeking directors to back Chief Competitive Officer Thierry Bollore’s promotion to chief operating officer.

The French government, which had pushed Ghosn to employ with a deputy who could one day succeed him at the helm of the Renault-Nissan alliance, stated it backed Bollore’s appointment.

The French state is Renault’s most significant investor with a 15 percent stake.

Desmarest, 72, shared some issues raised by other independent directors about the way the recruitment procedure was managed and competing cadidates removed, according to sources.

But his choice to resign was “based on his age and personal reasons”, Renault stated on Tuesday.

Renault and the government have looked to avoid a repeat of a 2015 clash where France raised its stake in the company to swing an investor vote and secure double voting rights.