PARIS/LONDON--Nissan wants Britain to pledge compensation for any tax barriers resulting from its decision to leave the European Union, or the Japanese automaker could scrap a potential new investment in the country's biggest car plant, its CEO said on Thursday.
Carlos Ghosn's remarks indicate growing concern among global carmakers that Britain could be heading towards a so-called 'hard Brexit', which would leave them paying tariffs to export UK-assembled cars to EU markets. Nissan, which builds around a third of Britain's total car output at its plant in Sunderland, northeast England, is due to decide early next year on where to build its next Qashqai sport utility vehicle.
"If I need to make an investment in the next few months and I can't wait until the end of Brexit, then I have to make a deal with the UK government," Ghosn told reporters at the Paris auto show.
"You can have commitments of compensation in case you have something negative," he said. "If there are tax barriers being established on cars, you have to have a commitment for carmakers who export to Europe that there is some kind of compensation."
Ghosn's ultimatum echoes concerns from fellow Japanese carmaker Toyota which said the imposition of duties as part of a Brexit deal would make running its English plant "very, very tough."
Britain's business ministry did not offer an immediate comment when contacted by Reuters. Around 814,000 people in Britain depend of on the country's overwhelmingly foreign-owned car industry for jobs, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders industry body.
The June 23 Brexit vote took many investors and chief executives by surprise, triggering the deepest political and financial turmoil in Britain since World War Two and the biggest ever one-day fall in sterling against the dollar. Prime Minister Theresa May's government has tried to reassure major manufacturers that Britain is open for business and that it will take their views into account during the country's negotiations on new trade relations with the EU.
"The UK government ... is talking with all the investors in the UK and saying: 'OK, where are you concerned? What kind of problems do you have? What would make you stay?' And we've been very clear," Ghosn said. "They will take this into consideration, build a policy, and as a function of this policy we will make a decision."
