Photo/Illutration The Mitsubishi Motors Corp.’s logo (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

Mitsubishi Motors Corp. is finalizing its decision not to join the proposed management integration between Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Co. as it fears being marginalized, sources said on Jan. 24.

Instead, Mitsubishi will explore collaboration with the two automakers while staying under the umbrella of its largest shareholder, Nissan.

Mitsubishi wants to continue having its shares publicly traded on the stock exchange.

Honda and Nissan are considering establishing a holding company in August 2026 with both automakers planning to delist and come under one umbrella.

Mitsubishi, however, plans to remain outside the holding company, maintaining its position under Nissan, which owns just under 30 percent of its shares.

Mitsubishi will explore collaboration with the two automakers on a project-by-project basis.

Mitsubishi Motors President Takao Kato, who attended a news conference in December regarding the Honda-Nissan management integration, said that the company would decide whether to join around the end of January. 

“Our position is somewhat different from (Honda and Nissan),” Kato said on Jan. 10. “A management integration is not necessarily the only path forward for us.”

Mitsubishi will now monitor the management integration between Honda and Nissan.

Mitsubishi’s market capitalization is only about one-10th that of Honda.

Even if Mitsubishi were to join the holding company directly, its smaller market value would limit the number of board members it could appoint compared to Honda or Nissan.

“Even if we were to join, we would just end up being overshadowed (within the holding company),” a Mitsubishi official said.

The company will make a final decision while taking into account the intentions of the Mitsubishi Group.

While Nissan is Mitsubishi’s largest shareholder, other major stakeholders also include Mitsubishi Corp. and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd.

Delisting while joining the new holding company could effectively exclude Mitsubishi Motors from the Mitsubishi Group.

“The Mitsubishi Group has no intention of letting Mitsubishi Motors go,” a source said.

The management integration talks between Honda and Nissan seek to finalize specific details of Nissan’s restructuring plan around the end of this month, including cutting 9,000 jobs.

At a news conference in December, Honda Motor President Toshihiro Mibe said, “There is still a possibility the management integration may not materialize.”

Negotiations toward a June agreement will face challenges along the way.

(This article was written by Akihiro Nishiyama and Daisuke Matsuoka.)

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