Mercedes will not participate in Renault's new electric van project

Mercedes-Benz Group, a long-time Renault van partner, will not participate in the French company's FlexEvan electric project, instead focusing on its own premium electric vehicle VAN.EA, according to two sources familiar with the situation.

FlexEvan is being developed for the Renault and Nissan brands, and sources say it may also be joined by Renault Trucks, a brand owned by Sweden's Volvo. A Mercedes spokesman confirmed that the company had no plans to launch a mid-sized or large van on a different platform than the VAN.Renault has declined to comment.

Following the collapse of demand for the diesel engines Renault had been selling to its German partner, as well as the termination of a joint project on Twingo-Smart cars, Renault and Mercedes have only one joint project - the small Citan van, whose first electric version is now being launched. Renault has long sought to expand its van collaboration with Mercedes, but has been unsuccessful.

"It is true that the majority (of the collaboration with Mercedes) has been completed," one of the sources said.

Renault has expanded its partnerships beyond the historic alliances with Nissan and Daimler, both championed by his predecessor Carlos Ghosn, under CEO Luca de Meo.

According to a third source, no concrete project between Renault and Mercedes is currently being studied, but new incentive programmes such as the US Inflation Reduction Act and similar European measures could lead to the two cooperating on the sharing of manufacturing facilities.