Negotiations to sell the former Renault subsidiary to a buyer failed. 300 employees are threatened.
Renault may well deny having caused the takeover of Fonderie de Bretagne by the German fund Private Assets to fail, but the car manufacturer is the subject of a slew of criticism.
The 300 employees of this foundry, based in Caudan (Morbihan) since 1965, now see their jobs threatened. Because the negotiations, carried out since July with the buyer, were unsuccessful. Owner of the foundry until 2022, Renault sold it to Callista, a German fund, which wished to sell it in turn.
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A draft agreement brought together Private Assets, Renault, the State and the communities. Everyone promised to contribute their part in financing the rescue. Renault had committed 35 million euros, the State and communities 18 million and Private Assets 1.5 million.
Parts intended for thermal vehicles
But 2.9 million euros were missing to complete the rescue plan. The buyer proposed that this amount be shared equally with Renault and that the manufacturer, the foundry's first customer (95% of its turnover in 2024), undertakes to maintain the prices and market share of its supplier. for the years 2025, 2026 and 2027. But Renault has not validated this proposal. It plans to reduce the production of thermal vehicles for which the casting parts are intended.
Faced with the anger of the directors of the foundry, the employees and the Minister of Industry, whose entourage believes that « Renault must now face its responsibilities and assume the consequences of the decisions that will be taken », the manufacturer responds: « We regret the sudden withdrawal of Private Assets, although all the players had made an effort, in particular Renault Group. » An end of inadmissibility. No other buyer is in the running at the moment.
