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Audi, Volkswagen's luxury car division, has agreed to pay a substantial fine in Germany for its role in an emissions fraud scandal that has become a serious threat to the country's auto industry.
The fine of 800 million euros, about 930 million dollars, will solve the civil lawsuits against the company, but it does not affect the criminal investigation on the leaders of Audi which would have led to the arrest of the former director general, prosecutors said in Munich.
Audi said in a statement "accept the fine and, in doing so, recognize its responsibility". The division, which represents a disproportionate share of Volkswagen's profits, also warned that the penalty would make it miss its financial targets. year.
The fine brings the cost of the Volkswagen scandal (fines and lawsuits) to more than $ 32 billion, affecting its ability to invest in new technologies such as autonomous vehicles. And there could be other financial consequences ahead: shareholders seeking 9 billion euros sue the company in German courts.
The fine also undermines the reputation of the German auto industry a day after the country's regulators officially accused Opel of using illegal software to hide the excessive emissions of diesel vehicles. Opel, a former subsidiary of General Motors, now belongs to PSA, the French car maker Peugeot and Citroën.
Since Volkswagen admitted, in September 2015, to have used engine software to fool the regulators of Europe and the United States, the scandal has spread to almost all European carmakers. This is a particular threat to German automakers that dominate the luxury car sector because of their reputation for engineering excellence, which has been questioned by the scandal.
Car manufacturers, including Daimler's Mercedes division, are accused of using various methods to ensure that diesel cars pass official emissions tests, even though they emit illegal amounts of nitrogen oxides regularly used. Nitrogen oxides are considered a cause of lung conditions such as asthma and cancer, and are the leading cause of smog in urban settings.
The fine imposed on Audi was due to the fact that he did not properly supervise the employees who designed and executed the emission fraud scheme. Prosecutors in Munich continue to investigate charges allegedly brought by Audi officials, including Rupert Stadler, who was the company's chief executive officer when he was arrested in June.
Despite his pre-trial detention, Mr. Stadler continued to hold the title of Chief Executive Officer until he was relieved of his duties this month.
Prosecutors in Munich said the fine resulted from a behavior that had started in 2004 and that had led to the installation of illegal software in nearly five million cars. The emissions reduction software was present in the V6 and V8 engines built by Audi and also used in the Volkswagen and Porsche models. In addition, Audi told prosecutors that Audi was selling cars equipped with Volkswagen-designed engines, which also had illegal software.
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