PARIS -- Renault has appointed Luca de Meo, the former head of Volkswagen Group's Seat brand, as CEO as the automaker looks to move on from the Carlos Ghosn era.
De Meo has been a front-runner to replace ousted CEO Thierry Bollore for months but his appointment was delayed because he had a noncompete clause with VW Group.
De Meo, 52, will take up the post on July 1, Renault said in a statement on Tuesday. He replaces Clotilde Delbos, who took over as Renault's interim CEO after Bollore stepped down in October. Delbos will continue as interim CEO until de Meo takes office, Renault said. The board would like her to become deputy CEO after that, the statement said.
De Meo will be prohibited from disclosing competitive information for five months and must spend that time at his home before officially starting at Renault, the French newspaper Le Figaro reported Tuesday.
His hiring as CEO will need to be approved at Renault's general shareholders' meeting in April.
De Meo was CEO of VW Group's Seat brand for five years until he stepped down this month. He led Seat to record sales, including 517,600 in 2018, an 11 percent increase from 2017, and gave the brand a sportier image, creating the Cupra subbrand aimed at youthful buyers.