Nissan to Sell HQ Building for 97 B. Yen

Tokyo, Nov. 6 (Jiji Press)–Nissan Motor Co. said Thursday that it will sell its headquarters building in the city of Yokohama, south of Tokyo, for 97 billion yen as part of its turnaround efforts. The struggling Japanese automaker will continue to use the building in the Kanagawa Prefecture capital as its main office under a leaseback contract. It is set to log an extraordinary profit of 73.9 billion yen from the sale in the ongoing fiscal year through next March. The company will place the building in a trust and sell the beneficiary rights including rental income to a special-purpose company set up by firms including Taiwanese auto parts maker Minth Group Ltd. Nissan plans to use funds from the sale for future capital investments. The rent for the building has not been disclosed. The lease term will span 20 years from Dec. 12. Nissan selected the buyer through a bidding process, informed sources said. The automaker is scheduled to announce its earnings for April-September later Thursday. It is expected to report a consolidated net loss of about 230 billion yen for the first half of fiscal 2025. Nissan said late last month that it expects to post a group operating loss of 275 billion yen for the full year to March 2026. In fiscal 2024, Nissan slipped into the red with a consolidated net loss of over 670 billion yen due to sluggish sales. In the wake of the dismal result, the company compiled a series of restructuring measures such as cutting 20,000 jobs and shuttering seven plants in Japan and abroad, including its mainstay Oppama plant in the Kanagawa city of Yokosuka. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]