Samsung Group says it now wants its name removed from Renault Samsung Motors (RSM), even though the firm agreed in 2010 to its use until 2020.
The news comes from a report in the Korea Herald, which quotes an unnamed executive as stating, “We want to take our brand Samsung out of Renault Samsung since we don’t have anything to do with the car sales”.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
RSM is majority held by Renault Group but Samsung Card, a financial subsidiary of the Korean conglomerate, has a 19.9% share in the Busan-based car manufacturer. Samsung receives royalty payments for the use of its name and badging on the cars but Renault has management control of the firm.
Responding to the newspaper’s quote from the Samsung executive, a Renault spokesperson said the group has “no immediate plans to make any change” in its relationship with Samsung Group.
The Korean number four manufacturer (by 2012 sales) sold its first car in 1998, having been launched as Samsung Motors four years previously. The firm was hit hard by the Asian financial crisis during 1997 and eventually succumbed to bankruptcy. After lengthly negotiations, Renault eventually paid the equivalent of US$560m in December 2000 for a 70% stake in a new firm, Renault Samsung Motors. This included the giant Busan plant which had been erected at vast expense to produce the original Nissan-based Samsung SM5 sedan, the former firm’s only model.
In 2011, RSM saw its sales fall by 9% YoY, selling only 246,959 passenger cars (109,221 locally and 137,738 overseas).The firm exports certain models rebadged as Renaults and Nissans. This includes the Renault Koleos (Samsung QM5), Renault Scala (Samsung SM3), Renault Latitude/Safrane (SM5), Renault Talisman (SM7) and Nissan Almera/Sunny (SM3).
RSM recently confirmed plans to launch its first electric car in 2013. This will be a Samsung-badged version of the Renault Fluence Z.E.
Author: Glenn Brooks
