Nissan Officially Removes Makoto Uchida from CEO Post

KatadataOTO – Nissan has finally decided to replace Makoto Uchida from his position as Chief Executive Officer after failing to merge with Honda. The Japanese manufacturer will appoint Ivan Espinosa, Chief Planning Officer, as his replacement.

The replacement is planned to take place in the near future. According to the Associated Press, he will officially take the CEO position on April 1, 2025.

Espinosa himself is not new to Nissan, as he has been with the company since 2003. He has extensively developed his career in the Mexico and Southeast Asia regions.

“I believe that Nissan has far greater potential than what we see today. The company will surely bounce back,” he told the media (11/03).

Photo : Reuters

However, he declined to comment on whether he would try to renegotiate with Honda. Espinosa revealed that he still needs time to think about various strategies for the company's future.

Besides Uchida, Nissan's board of directors has also undergone many changes. This strategic move is expected to bring a breath of fresh air to the company, which is currently under pressure.

It should be noted that Nissan previously planned to merge with Honda. This move was believed to be able to save the company from bankruptcy.

However, the deal fell through because Honda wanted to make Nissan a subsidiary. Whereas in the initial agreement, both were to be two entities with equal voting rights.

Makoto Uchida assessed that the deal was not beneficial for the company he was leading. Therefore, he canceled the merger plan.

This situation is certainly very bad, considering the company is likely to experience a net loss of $536 million, or the equivalent of IDR 8.7 trillion, for the fiscal year ending in March.

Photo : KatadataOTO

Nevertheless, Nissan actually still has several ways to save itself from bankruptcy. One of them is by partnering with Foxconn, a technology company from Taiwan.

Not only that, Nissan has also taken various other measures, including laying off 9,000 of its employees worldwide. It is hoped that this will lighten the company's burden.