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- Nissan wants full control of Formula E team when Gen3 regulations come in next season
- Dams Formula Two outfit also recently sold off by Driot family
The E.Dams Formula E outfit, one of the all-electric series' founder teams in 2014, have been sold for an undisclosed fee to Japanese automaker Nissan.
E.Dams have acted as the operator for Nissan in Formula E since 2018, when the brand originally purchased a stake in the team. The sum and size of that holding have never been revealed.
After the death of team founder Jean-Paul Driot, his sons Oliver and Gregory took control of the Dams outfit but have now sold both the Formula E team and the Formula Two racing outfit, with the latter acquired by ex-Formula One driver Charles Pic.
With the upcoming integration of Formula E's new 'Gen3' regulations for the 2022/23 season, Nissan want to be in charge of every aspect of the team's operations.
“Moving forward, as we decided to invest for Gen3 [the new sporting regulations], we wanted to have full control of each and every touchpoint of Formula E, including the powertrain as a project, but also the racing team,” Nissan chief operating officer Ashwani Gupta told Autosport.
“This project is an integral part of Nissan Motor Company. From the investment front, we are fully prepared and capable to do the investment.
“The R&D remains in France. However, from Japan, we have already sent many engineers to France to work on this project.
“And now the Japan team and the French teams are working together exactly for the same purpose of transferring that know-how from each other.”
Francois Sicard, who currently works across both Dams racing teams as managing director, will depart the operation at an unconfirmed date to pick up his new role as the International Automobile Federation's (FIA) sporting director.
Tommaso Volpe, the general manager of the Formula E team, is set to step up and become the new managing director of the E.Dams operation.
Volpe told Autosport that this transition to new ownership will allow for easier collaboration moving forwards.
“We can make full synergy with the car development operations as well," he added.
“At the moment, the car is developed within the Alliance platform [a strategic partnership between Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi], and the team is an independent company. But the moment the team is owned by Nissan, we can make full synergy with all the operations.”