Ford President of the Americas Mark Fields has confirmed that there have been no discussions between Ford and Renault-Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn, despite news reports to the contrary. Ford intends to improve its North American business without the help of an outside party and especially one that is foreign based. Industry analysts had expected Ghosn to turn to Ford in hope of an alliance after the recent breakdown in talks with General Motors.

Instead, Ford will focus on its original Way Forward turnaround plan by which it expects to shed up to $5 billion in costs by the end of 2008. The first step will be to cut roughly 10,000 white-collar workers and offering buyouts to all of its 75,000 unionized employees. This latest news may disappoint management at Renault-Nissan, who have stated that they’re interested in finding another partner.