What comes after Nissan Next?

TOKYO — Nissan's midterm business plan for recovery was called "Nissan Next." But this fall, the company's employees, suppliers, dealers and customers will learn what's really next.

Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida is finalizing a new long-term strategy for Nissan to be presented at that time — a blueprint that will outline a brighter future of sustainable growth for the beleaguered Japanese automaker, once massive losses and slumping sales are finally in the rearview mirror.

Uchida teased his new 10-year road map at a contentious annual shareholders' meeting last month, where the CEO tried to keep a focus on the positives as shareholders complained about issues ranging from the company's lackluster stock price to its relations with its French partner Renault.

"In the past, Nissan was unable to adapt to changes with flexibility as a result of giving priority to short-term profits," Uchida said. "Based on lessons learned, we will demonstrate Nissan's long-term vision for the next 10 years and beyond and a road map to make it a reality."

The plan will be a crucial test of Uchida's ability to steer Japan's No. 3 automaker out of a rocky era, said a person close to the Nissan board who is familiar with the strategic discussions.

Uchida, who took office in late 2019 amid the tumultuous fallout of the arrest and ouster of former Chairman Carlos Ghosn, will now have to pave a path not just for recovery, but for growth.

"Nissan Next is not a strategy," said the person familiar with the planning. "It's a short-term recovery plan that is all about cutting and cutting.

"The long-term strategy will be a real test of Uchida's leadership."

The vision is expected to be unveiled in the fall, possibly around November, and to plot steps forward after the completion of the Nissan Next revival plan unveiled in May 2020.

That plan called for job cuts at the automaker, along with cost reductions and a big downscaling in global production capacity. It runs through March 31, 2024.

But Nissan is a long way from achieving some of the goals.

The current plan targets an operating profit margin of 5 percent. But for this fiscal year, Nissan expects to barely break even. Nissan Next also envisioned global sales of around 5.38 million vehicles at the finish line, but that will take a steep increase from Nissan's forecast for 4.4 million sales this fiscal year.

Uchida declined to give details of the long-term vision to come, saying it is still under development. But two key pillars, he said, will be electrification and autonomous-driving technologies.

Among the technologies on tap, he said, are a solid-state battery and a battery that uses no cobalt. Those two breakthroughs could improve performance and reduce cost. An updated e-Power gasoline-electric drivetrain will get an engine with a world-leading 50 percent thermal efficiency.

Meanwhile, the key elements of future electric vehicle architectures — the battery, motor and platform — will be 70 percent commonized with alliance partners Renault and Mitsubishi.

Battery supply chains will be a top focus on the long-term strategy, the person familiar with the thinking said. The road map also is expected to spell out market-by-market strategies for Nissan, envision the future of alliance relations and touch on industry conundrums, such as how to keep vehicles affordable in an age of increasingly sophisticated and expensive technologies.

One topic likely to remain untouched is the sensitive question of rebalancing the cross-shareholdings that give Renault a controlling 43 percent stake in Nissan but Nissan only a 15 percent stake in Renault, with no voting rights. That is expected to remain on the back burner while Nissan, Renault and Mitsubishi all implement their individual recovery plans to dig out of losses.

But the long-term vision is expected to be a sweeping master plan that covers everything from social responsibility and supply chain management to motorsports and the ailing Infiniti brand.

"If there is one key word for the upcoming strategy," the source said, "it will be 'flexibility.' "