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Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn quits over diesel emissions scandal Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn quits over diesel emissions scandal
(35 minutes later)
Volkswagen has announced that its chief executive, Martin Winterkorn, will leave the carmaker after it was engulfed by a scandal over cheating diesel emissions tests. Volkswagen’s chief executive, Martin Winterkorn, has quit following relentless speculation about his future in the wake of the diesel emissions test scandal.
The German company admitted that 11m cars were installed with a device that reduced emissions under test conditions only. Related: Volkswagen crisis: chief executive Martin Winterkorn resigns - live
The company faces a bill of up to £12bn in fines and is the subject of multiple investigations after the US Environmental Protection Agency accused it of manipulating tests on 18 September. In a statement issued on Wednesday, Winterkorn said he took full responsibility for the scandal, in which the company admitted that 11m cars were installed with a defeat device that reduced emissions under test conditions only, but he denied personal wrongdoing.
The company’s stock market value has fallen dramatically since the admission earlier this week. As he resigned, Winterkorn described the situation facing the once-proud company as a “grave crisis”.
The company faces up to £12bn in fines and is the subject of multiple investigations after the US Environmental Protection Agency accused it of manipulating tests on 18 September.
Winterkorn, who has run the German company since the start of 2007, said: “I am shocked by the events of the past few days. Above all, I am stunned that misconduct on such a scale was possible in the Volkswagen group. As CEO I accept responsibility for the irregularities that have been found in diesel engines and have therefore requested the supervisory board to agree on terminating my function as CEO of the Volkswagen group.
“I am doing this in the interests of the company, even though I am not aware of any wrongdoing on my part.”
Related: VW scandal caused nearly 1m tonnes of extra pollution, analysis showsRelated: VW scandal caused nearly 1m tonnes of extra pollution, analysis shows
Winterkorn has run the German company since the start of 2007, two years before the cars found to have been rigged were first sold. Following days of speculation over whether he would need to leave, Winterkorn said: “Volkswagen needs a fresh start – also in terms of personnel. I am clearing the way for this fresh start with my resignation.”
He had said he would remain in his job but has come under relentless pressure as Volkswagen’s plunging share price has wiped more than a third off its market value. He had been under relentless pressure to step down as Volkswagen’s plunging share price wiped more than a third off the company’s value. The shares were 8% higher after his resignation, which came just before the German stock market was due to close.
More details soon … “I have always been driven by my desire to serve this company, especially our customers and employees. Volkswagen has been, is and will always be my life. The process of clarification and transparency must continue. This is the only way to win back trust. I am convinced that the Volkswagen group and its team will overcome this grave crisis,” he said.