Belgian Group Agrees Deal to Buy Renault's Historic Viry-Châtillon Engine Base

French automotive group Renault has agreed a deal to sell its Viry-Châtillon engine facility to Belgium's Dumarey Group. The Belgian-based company, which specialises in propulsion systems and engineering components for production vehicles, is set to take full control of the French site.

A formal acquisition proposal has already been submitted to Alpine Racing. Both parties are currently working through a comprehensive review of the organisational structure and financial details to finalise the deal as swiftly as possible. The agreement will see Dumarey Group acquire Alpine Racing SAS, including all personnel as well as the tangible and intangible assets needed to operate the facility.

Located in the southern suburbs of Paris, the Viry base served as the home of Renault's Formula 1 engine operations for decades and a historic cornerstone of French motorsport. However, Renault decided late last year to end its in-house engine production and switch to Mercedes customer power units for the Alpine F1 team, plunging the future of hundreds of employees into uncertainty.

In addition, Alpine is stepping away from the World Endurance Championship (WEC) at the end of the season. Until now, the Viry facility has been used for the maintenance and assembly of the Mecachrome-produced engines powering the A424 LMDh prototypes in the Hypercar class.

The future in endurance racing

The transaction also directly impacts the Hypercar programme, where factory partner Signatech is exploring options to continue racing the A424 under a different brand in 2027. Following the 6 Hours of Fuji, talks were held regarding a potential partnership with Chinese manufacturer Geely, though negotiations ultimately fell through.

The entry deadline for the 2027 season is 25 November, by which time all required documentation must be finalised to retain a spot in the top class. Team principal Philippe Sinault has repeatedly underlined that the squad retains the full capacity—engineers, mechanics, and technical resources—to continue competing. Putting the project together also requires sorting out the driver roster, particularly following the departure of António Félix da Costa, while drivers such as Ferdinand Habsburg and Charles Milesi remain part of the fold.

Dumarey Group stated that the acquisition forms part of its broader push into motorsport, with the deal creating valuable opportunities to harness Renault's extensive Formula 1 expertise for future racing endeavours.