Union is looking for answers about Nissan’s British factory as a Honda merger looms

Thousands of workers at Nissan’s giant British car factory are facing uncertainty after the company began merger talks with rival Honda.

Trade union Unite has called for assurances after details emerged of the planned merger of major Japanese companies and smaller rival Mitsubishi, bringing together three companies with a combined value of £46 billion.

The companies argue that combining their firepower makes sense as they fight back against the likes of Tesla and cheaper Chinese manufacturers like BYD amid the shift to electric vehicles.

The combined group would have an annual turnover of almost £182 billion after the Nissan-Honda merger, making it the world’s third largest car manufacturer, and employ 360,000 people.

It increases the uncertainty surrounding Nissan’s Sunderland plant. Last month, the Japanese giant announced proposals to cut 9,000 jobs, or 7 percent of the global workforce.

However, the partnership could be a boost for Sunderland if, as speculated, it marks a return for Honda to Britain, using some of the spare capacity at the factory.

The factory, Britain’s largest car factory, currently employs more than 6,000 people and produces the Qashqai, Juke and Leaf models.

Nissan did not say if or how Sunderland might be affected by the announcement made yesterday.

Unite’s national automotive officer, Steve Bush, said: ‘Unite will closely monitor the progress of the merger talks and seek assurances from Nissan on any impact on its UK operations.’

Sunderland is currently operating at half capacity, and it has been reported that the possibility of Honda producing cars there has been discussed by executives.

If that were to happen, it would mark a return to British car manufacturing for the company, which once employed thousands of people at its Swindon plant but closed the site in 2021, blaming Brexit.

Professor David Bailey, from Birmingham Business School, said: ‘If the Government had an industrial strategy it would be doing everything it can to ramp up production in Sunderland of not just Nissan vehicles but also Honda and Mitsubishi as they have the capacity there.’

Honda hopes to finalize a deal in June, with a new parent company for the three listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in August.

Although it is being billed as a merger, observers say Honda is in fact acquiring Nissan and Mitsubishi as it will choose most of the directors for the new owner of the three Japanese car brands, including key managers.

Nissan is struggling with declining sales in the US and China and issued a profit warning last month. Bailey said it was at “the last chance saloon.”

“Nissan squandered its early lead in electric vehicles and did nothing in hybrids. Now that it is in a terrible condition, this is really a rescue from Honda,” he said.

Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe said the company’s deal with Nissan was “vital” to help the company navigate the changes taking place in the automotive industry.