Nissan rejigs top deck at India operations, Sinan Ozkok replaces Thomas Kuehl as president

Nissan has announced the appointment of Sinan Ozkok as the president of its Indian operations.

Sinan, who will be based at Nissan Motor India in Gurgaon, will have responsibility for all functions in India including sales and marketing, R&D and manufacturing, for both Nissan and Datsun brands.

Sinan joins India from Nissan Otomotiv A.Ş. (NOAS), Nissan’s national sales company in Turkey, where he has been managing director since 2015. According to Nissan, Sinan, 49, has overseen a significant growth in Turkey for Nissan and brings with him 26 years’ experience of working within the automotive industry.

Sinan’s career started in 1993 in Renault, where he held senior positions across Marketing, Dealer Network Management, Retail Operation and Sales. He joined Nissan in 2015.

Commenting on the new appointment, Peyman Kargar, Nissan chairman of the Africa, Middle East and India region, said: “I am delighted that Sinan will be driving Nissan’s business forward in India. Not only does he bring vast experience of working within the industry over many years, he has a proven track record.”

Sinan said: “I am looking forward to working in one of the most dynamic and important auto markets in the world. Nissan and Datsun offer a broad and compelling line-up for customers and I will be working to develop the full potential of both brands in India.”

Sinan replaces Thomas Kuehl, who leaves India after a two-year stint, having been appointed president (India Operations) on July 12, 2017.  

The new man at helm of Nissan's operations in India has a tough task in front of him. Nissan Motor India closed FY2019 with sales of 36,525 units (-30.82%) and exported 57,647 units (-15.01%). The company, as of end-April 2019, has a passenger vehicle market share of just 0.82 percent. This means production capacity is grossly underutilised, considering the Renault Nissan Automotive India plant at Oragadam, Chennai, has a manufacturing capacity of 480,000 units per annum. 

Also read: Nissan CEO to review ties with Renault in light of FCA-Renault merger proposal

Nissan sells 372,272 units globally in April 2019, down 4.9%