July 4, 2011 -- Updated 1852 GMT (0252 HKT)
Williams last used Renault engines in 1997, when Canada's Jacques Villenueve won the world drivers' title.
(CNN) -- Williams will revert to using Renault engines in the 2012 and 2013 Formula One seasons, restoring a partnership that led to the most successful era in the team's history.
The Britain-based outfit won four drivers' titles and five constructors' championships with cars powered by the French manufacturer between 1989 to 1997, triumphing in 63 races. Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost, Damon Hill and Jacques Villeneuve all finished on top at season's end.
However, Williams has not won a grand prix since 2004 and languishes in ninth place in the teams' standings this season with four points from eight rounds.
The new deal will end a two-year association with Cosworth.
"This reunites the F1 team with a leading car manufacturer and complements our new relationship with Jaguar," team principal Frank Williams told the Williams F1 website on Monday.
Hamilton predicts 'best British GP ever'
"At the same time, we are grateful to Cosworth: they have been a fair and reliable partner both on and off the track for the past two years and we look forward to working with them across our business in the future.
"Our previous relationship with Renault was one of the most successful in Williams' history but we will not allow ourselves to dwell too much on the past. We must look to the future and continue to re-build our on-track reputation, which I am hopeful that today's announcement will help us to do."
The partnership will include other marketing and business liaisons, and is expected to continue when the new turbo-charged energy-efficient V6 engines are introduced to F1 from 2014.
"Together we produced racing cars that are recognized for their technical innovation, and it is still Renault's most successful period in F1 to date," Renault Sport F1 president Bernard Rey said.
It means Renault will supply four of the sport's 12 teams from next year, along with world champions Red Bull, Team Lotus and the outfit it used to own, the renamed Lotus Renault..
"It puts us ahead of other engine manufacturers in terms of market share, but off track it will also enable us to further use Formula One as a marketing platform for our parent company, Renault, to try to bring a bit of this association to our fans and our customers worldwide," Rey said.
"Williams has recently taken several important steps, both commercially and technically, to update its operations and we feel that this partnership is another important step in its rigorous plan."
Meanwhile, Marussia Virgin Racing announced a new deal with McLaren on Monday that is intended to boost the struggling team's performance.
The Britain-based Russian outfit, which is yet to earn a point in 2011, will have access to McLaren's Applied Technologies arm -- including facilities such as the team's wind tunnel, driver simulators and race strategy tools.
Chief executive Andy Webb said the team had also bought out the F1 business of its former technical partner WRT, which was owned by ex-director Nick Wirth.
"When we undertook our detailed review of the team in the first half of 2011, it was clear that our bold ambitions for the future would need to be matched with some equally bold steps towards achieving them," Webb told the Marussia Virgin website.
"I am delighted that in a relatively short space of time we are now in the fantastic position of being able to make these two very important announcements, which will enable us to make some dramatic strides forward with immediate effect.
"McLaren is one of the most prestigious and successful marques in Grand Prix racing history, with an enviable record of success over many years. We can benefit enormously from McLaren's far-reaching techniques and capabilities and I have no doubt that this partnership will see us take the technical steps necessary to make a significant leap forwards."
Credit: CNN (www.cnn.com)
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