Renault Argentina

Renault Argentina is the Argentine subsidiary of the French car manufacturer Renault.[4] It is one of the oldest Renault operations in the world and is ranked consistently in first place by sales between the local automakers. Renault Argentina was officially established in 1975, but the French company had a long presence in Argentina before that.

History

Early years

Renault partnered with Industrias Kaiser Argentina, a company created by Kaiser-Frazer Automobile Corporation and the Argentine government, which had a factory in Santa Isabel, Córdoba and a network of smaller factories around the country. In 1967, Renault took control of Industrias Kaiser Argentina by acquiring a majority stake, renaming it IKA Renault SAICF. In 1970, Renault purchased the remaining company's shares, introducing in 1971 the Renault 12, which would become one of its most popular cars in the Argentine market with more than 444,000 units produced.[5]

CIADEA

When Carlos Saúl Menem assumed the Argentine presidency, the markets were opened and Renault ceased many of its minor operations in Argentina, improving its economic situation. In 1992, the entrepreneur Manuel Antelo agreed the purchase of a majority stake in Renault Argentina. According to some journalists, the terms of this agreement were very advantageous for Antelo. He only had to pay if the company made profits and also received ARS100 million from Renault. Renault Argentina was renamed Compañia Interamericana de Automóviles SA (American Automobile Company) or CIADEA, S.A. The actual ownership of it was transferred to a holding called Compagnie Financière pour l'Amérique Latine (Financial Company for Latin America) or Cofal, from which Antelo owned two-thirds and the rest was from Renault of France. The holding also took control of the newly established Brazilian operations. Cofal in turn only held 72.3% of CIADEA. The remaining shares were listed on the Buenos Aires stock exchange.[10]

Antelo reorganized the corporate structure, fired workers and installed facility improvements,[9] bringing the level of quality to that of the Renault factories in France.[11] The company introduced the Renault 19 and Renault 9 and became one of the leading automakers.[8]

1994 allegations

In 1994 the Argentine courts began proceedings against Antelo alleging smuggling and defrauding due to a complaint by the Dirección General de Aduanas (National Customs Administration), which accused him of making fraudulent imports and exports of vehicles. The move was related to the exportation of auto parts to Uruguay before returning it to Argentina as Renault Trafic units.

According to the charges, these operations allowed CIADEA to improperly collect exportation refunds and exemption taxes for imported vehicles.[12] In April 1998, the Federal Court dismissed the accusations to Antelo. The Federal Court of Appeal reversed the judgment ordering again prosecutions. In August 2000, a court set a bail of ARS1 million to Antelo and exempted him from going to prison. In February 2006, the case was dismissed.[13]

type	Subsidiary
predecessor	IKA
area served	Argentina
key people	Pablo Sibilia (CEO)‡R1R‡‡R2R‡
industry	Automotive
products	Automobiles, vans, pickup trucks
revenue	ARS12.9 billion (2012)‡R3R‡
assets	ARS4.9 billion (2012)‡R3R‡
owner	Renault SAS (96.33%) RDIC (3.67%)
num employees	3,656 (2012)‡R3R‡
parent	Renault
subsid	Centro Automotores S.A. and Centro del Norte S.A. (car dealerships) Plan Rombo S.A. and Courtage S.A. (automotive financing)‡R3R‡
foundation	1975
location city	Buenos Aires
location country	Argentina ‡R4R‡
homepage	renault.com.ar

History

Early years

Market expansion and decline

CIADEA

1994 allegations

1994 allegations

Return to Renault

Santa Isabel factory

Produced models

Current models

Past models

Imported models

Motorsport

External links

References