A SENIOR Renault executive has admitted that a suspected industrial spying scandal that resulted in three managers being sacked may have been a hoax.
The embarrassing revelation that investigators have so far failed to find any evidence of espionage is likely to strain relations between the car maker and the French government, which owns 15 per cent of the company.
When the spy claims became public in January, government ministers anonymously suggested possible Chinese involvement, provoking sharp denials from Beijing.
Finance minister Christine Lagarde said yesterday that Renault must face “all the consequences” if it emerged that it sacked three executives after being duped.
“What counts today is getting to the truth and getting there quickly, and if the suspicions were unfounded that justice be done, confidence restored and compensation paid,” Ms Lagarde said. “One shouldn’t shoot without a sight or accuse without proof.”
She was responding to comments in Le Figaro by Patrick Pélata, Renault’s chief operating officer, who admitted there were reasons to doubt that the company had been the victim of industrial espionage.
In January, Renault lodged a legal complaint over suspicions of spying targeting its high-profile electric vehicle programme. The three sacked executives denied wrongdoing and are already taking legal action against their former employer.
Announcing Renault’s U-turn, Mr Pélata said the company now had two hypotheses. “A certain number of elements have led us to doubt,” he said.
“Either we are facing an act of espionage and a member of our security team is protecting his source . . . or Renault is the victim of a manipulation . . . which could take the form of a fraud.
“In this case, we would offer to reinstate the three executives and Renault would make up for any injustice.”
The spying claims had already strained relations between the government and Renault, one of France’s biggest industrial champions. Ministers were angry that the company did not inform the authorities of its suspicions soon enough and decided to carry out its own investigation first.
An inquiry by French intelligence is continuing, but leaks in the French press this week suggest it has yet to find any proof of spying.