Renault defends Ghosn salary

The man who pulls the strings at both Renault and Nissan will keep his €7.2 million ($A10.83m) salary in defiance of more than half of Renault's shareholders after the board decided its CEO was worth it.

The decision has incensed voting rights-holding shareholders, 54 per cent of which voted against the size of Ghosn's 2015 salary package during the French car-maker's annual general meeting last Friday.

Admitting afterwards that the board was reviewing its pay structures starting with the current financial year, Renault insisted its results proved Ghosn had earned his salary package.

That package included €1.23 million worth of fixed salary, another €1.78 million in "variable" pay and €4.18 million in deferred stock and bonuses.

"The board once again acknowledges the quality of the 2015 results," Renault said in a statement.

The vote against Ghosn's package was purely symbolic and had no binding implications for the company.

The protest vote was instigated from the French government, which holds 18 percent of Renault's voting rights. It has twice before officially protested at Ghosn's pay package.

"The government has been consistent in calling for pay moderation, starting with companies under public ownership," a government official said.

But Ghosn would have none of it.

"It is important that you trust the board. The most important thing today is that Renault is doing well and is growing," Ghosn told a questioner over the size of his salary package.

"The board does not decide on the basis of caprice. It is the board acting on your delegated authority that decides who runs the company and the remuneration that matches their efforts and talents."

Ghosn's package is not out of line with rival European CEOs, including former protégé and now PSA Group CEO Carlos Tavares, who made €5.25 million in 2015.