Renault Group plans to invest more than €10 billion ($11 billion) in France over the next five years, focusing on electric vehicles and more affordable cars as the automaker expands domestic production amid a rapid shift toward electrification.
Renault Chief Executive François Provost said the investment would build on €13 billion the company has already spent in France over the past five years to overhaul its industrial footprint and increase its focus on electric vehicles.
“Over the last five years, we invested €13 billion in France to transform entirely our industrial footprint to bet on electric, and over the five coming years, if the social and political context allows it, we will re-invest more than €10 billion to continue pushing on electric and on making cars more affordable,” Provost said in an interview with France Inter radio on Saturday.
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The planned spending comes as electric vehicles gain significant ground in France, helped by a sharp increase in fuel prices following the start of the Iran war.
Battery-electric cars accounted for a record 42% of new vehicle registrations in France in September, according to Provost. The surge suggests that higher running costs for conventional vehicles are accelerating consumers’ shift toward electric alternatives.
For Renault, the increase in EV demand is also beginning to translate into higher domestic production.
“The reality is that today, we produce in France, in the French plants, more vehicles than before,” Provost said. “In 2025, we produced 500,000 cars in France. In 2026, we will produce at least 25% more thanks to the rise of electric vehicles.”
That would put Renault’s French production at at least 625,000 vehicles this year, representing an increase of at least 125,000 cars from 2025.
Renault Bets on Electric and Cheaper Cars
The investment plan highlights two pressures confronting European automakers at the same time: the need to accelerate electrification and the need to make EVs affordable enough to reach a broader consumer base.
The European auto industry has spent billions developing electric platforms, batteries and new production systems, but demand has not always grown at the pace manufacturers initially expected. High vehicle prices, expensive financing and uneven charging infrastructure have limited adoption in parts of the market.
Renault’s emphasis on more affordable cars suggests the company sees price as an important factor in the next phase of Europe’s EV transition.
The September increase in French EV registrations provides a potentially important tailwind. Fuel-price inflation can improve the economics of switching from petrol and diesel vehicles to electric cars, particularly for high-mileage drivers.
But Renault’s investment decision also reflects the industrial importance of keeping vehicle production in France as the European market undergoes a major technological transition. Provost’s condition that the additional investment depends on the “social and political context” points to the broader uncertainty facing European manufacturers. Automakers are operating under changing emissions rules, industrial policies, trade tensions and shifting government incentives, while competing with lower-cost manufacturers from China.
For Renault, maintaining a large domestic manufacturing footprint could provide advantages as France and the wider European Union seek to strengthen local automotive supply chains and accelerate the transition to electric vehicles. At the same time, higher production volumes will need to be matched by sustained demand. Producing more EVs does not by itself guarantee stronger profitability if manufacturers have to cut prices aggressively to move inventory.
That makes Renault’s focus on affordability crucial. The next stage of Europe’s electric-car market is likely to depend less on early adopters and more on whether automakers can bring EV prices closer to those of conventional vehicles.
Therefore, Renault’s planned €10 billion-plus investment is believed to represent more than an expansion of electric-car production. It is a bet that France can remain a competitive manufacturing base as the industry’s economics shift from internal-combustion engines toward batteries, software and electric drivetrains.
The company’s production figures suggest the transition is already changing the scale of its French operations. After producing 500,000 vehicles in France in 2025, Renault expects output to rise by at least a quarter in 2026 as electric vehicles become a larger part of its product mix.
If the trend continues, analysts expect the combination of rising EV demand, higher fuel costs, and investment in lower-priced models could give Renault a path to expand both electric-vehicle adoption and domestic manufacturing at the same time.