Honda, Nissan, Mitsubishi discuss potential merger to compete in electric vehicle market

Japanese automakers Honda and Nissan have initiated discussions with Mitsubishi Motors regarding a potential merger aimed at addressing the growing global competition in the electric vehicle (EV) sector.

The companies revealed these talks during an emergency press conference, Caliber.Az reports citing foreign media.

According to the statement, Honda and Nissan—Japan’s second and third-largest car manufacturers—are targeting completion of negotiations by June 2025, with plans to establish a holding company by August 2026.

Mitsubishi Motors, which is partially owned by Nissan, is expected to decide by the end of January whether it will join the merger, the companies confirmed.

Should the three-way merger proceed, the combined group would become the world’s third-largest automaker, with annual sales exceeding 8 million vehicles. This would position the alliance as a formidable competitor to Japan’s Toyota and Germany’s Volkswagen.

The primary motivation behind the potential merger is to pool resources and strengthen their position against major competitors, such as Tesla from the US and growing Chinese electric vehicle manufacturers. Japanese automakers have faced increasing pressure as they lag behind in the EV market.

Earlier this year, Nissan and Honda had already announced plans to collaborate on electric vehicle and software technology development, seeking to reduce costs and enhance competitiveness. Mitsubishi joined these discussions in August.

"Honda and Nissan have begun considering a business integration, and will study the creation of significant synergies between the two companies in a wide range of fields," Honda chief executive Makoto Uchida said. "It is significant that Nissan's partner, Mitsubishi Motors, is also involved in these discussions."

By Vafa Guliyeva