Ex-Seat chief Luca de Meo appointed new Renault boss

Luca de Meo has been named as the new boss of Renault, and will start in his new role in July.

The Italian had been head of the Volkswagen Group’s Spanish Seat brand since 2015, overseeing a massive period of growth fuelled by an expanding SUV range. He also oversaw the launch of Cupra as a standalone premium performance brand. He stepped down from the role earlier this month.

In a statement, Renault said it "considered that Mr de Meo, through his career, his experience and his success in his previous functions, combines all the qualities to contribute to all aspects of Groupe Renault’s development and transformation."

De Meo has worked in the car industry for more than 25 years. He began his career at Renault and spent time with Toyota and the Fiat Group before joining the Volkswagen Group as Volkswagen marketing boss in 2009. He then had a stint at Audi before moving to Seat.

Renault has been searching for a new chief executive after former boss Thierry Bolloré was ousted last October, along with a number of other executives associated with former chairman Carlos Ghosn.

The French manufacturer has been struggling to recover since Ghosn was dismissed after an internal investigation sparked by his arrest in Japan on financial misconduct charges. These related to his role as chairman of Nissan, with which Renault has a close alliance.