Volkswagen picks Porsche chief as new CEO
Volkswagen on Friday appointed the head of its Porsche brand, Matthias Mueller, as its new CEO, with the announcement coming a week after the German carmaker was found to have cheated emission tests, leaving it facing international probes, lawsuits and potentially hefty fines.
"Under my leadership, Volkswagen will do everything it can to develop and implement the most stringent compliance and governance standards in our industry," Mueller, 62, said in a statement issued following a meeting of the company's 20-person supervisory board at VW headquarters in Wolfsburg, Germany.
Backed by the family that holds a majority state in VW, Mueller takes the helm as the company contends with a diesel-rigging scandal that prompted Wednesday's resignation of Martin Winterkorn.
The crisis wiped out $22.4 billion from the company's market value in a week's time, with Volkswagen saying 11 million vehicles globally could be impacted.
As Mueller took charge, Germany's transport minister said the automaker had manipulated test results for roughly 2.8 million vehicles in the country, far more than the nearly 500,000 diesels involved in the United States.
Acting Chairman Berthold Huber apologized on behalf of the company, saying "the manipulation of tests for diesel engines is a moral and political disaster."