Kevin Magnussen handed Renault seat for 2016

Pastor Maldonado was pencilled in for the second seat, but his Venezuelan sponsors did not meet contracted payment deadlines.

Magnussen, 23, was unveiled alongside the team's new car, the RS16, at a launch event in Paris.

Magnussen initially broke onto the F1 circuit with McLaren in 2014, scooping a podium on his debut in Australia, but Fernando Alonso’s arrival at the Woking-based team saw him demoted to reserve driver last season.

The Dane was released by McLaren in October, a move he said was confirmed by email on his birthday.

Maldonado announced on Monday that he would not be racing for Renault in 2016, after plummeting oil prices led to problems between Renault and Venezuelan oil giant PDVSA

France's GP3 champion Esteban Ocon was also added as Renault’s test driver.