TOKYO/PARIS (Reuters) - Japan's Nissan said on Friday it would grant alliance member Renault's representatives seats on key committees of its board, ending a dispute between the two automakers.
Nissan said it will give Renault Chief Executive Thierry Bollore a seat on its board's audit committee and Renault Chairman Jean-Dominique Senard a seat on its nomination committee. Senard will also become vice-chairman of the board.
The move comes after demands by Senard for representation on the committees in return for approving Nissan's overhauled governance structure plunged the two-decade-old partnership into crisis.
"Groupe Renault welcomes Nissan's decision to grant Renault's representatives a seat on the committees of the Nissan board, which will be presented to the general shareholders' meeting on June 25," Renault said in a statement.
"The agreement reached on Renault's presence in Nissan's new governance confirms the spirit of dialogue and mutual respect that exists within the alliance," added Renault, whose merger talks with Fiat-Chrysler broke down this month.
Nissan also said it would nominate Yasushi Kimura, adviser at JXTG Holdings Inc , to chair its board.
The French state has a 15% stake in Renault, while Renault itself owns 43.4% of Nissan.
French ministers have consistently highlighted the importance of ensuring the Renault-Nissan alliance remains strong, before planning any further consolidation with the likes of Fiat-Chrysler.
The 20-year-old partnership between Renault and Nissan has been strained since former leader Carlos Ghosn was arrested for suspected financial misconduct last year. Ghosn denies wrongdoing.
(Reporting by Naomi Tajitsu, Maki Shiraki and Sam Nussey in TOKYO and Gilles Guillaume and Sudip Kar-Gupta in PARIS; Editing by Alexandra Hudson and Stephen Coates)
