France's second-largest automaker Renault SA had announced that Carlos Tavares, its Chief Operating Officer, has decided to step down. This came two weeks after the former COO publicly said that he had desired to run General Motors Co or Ford Motor Co.

In a Bloomberg interview published August 14, Tavares said that Chief Executive Officer Carlos Ghosn had no immediate plans of leaving Renault SA, so he expressed his desire to run GM or Ford. Raluca Barb, a Renault spokeswoman, said a replacement has yet to be chosen.

In an emailed statement, the French company said Tavares is leaving "in order to pursue other personal projects." Ghosn "will temporarily carry out the duties" of COO.

Tavares was appointed as COO two years ago after former COO Patrick Pelata was forced to resign over a failed spy scandal. Three senior managers were wrongfully dismissed due to said scandal. Tavares joined Renault more than 30 years ago as a test-driving engineer.