Volkswagen Appoints Matthias Mueller CEO

(RTTNews) - Volkswagen AG (VKW.L, VLKAF.PK, VOW.BE) on Friday said it has appointed Porsche chief, Matthias Mueller, as chief executive officer of the group with immediate effect.

The appointment follows the exit of Martin Winterkorn, who, rattled by the emission scandal, owned up responsibility for the ignominy.

Volkswagen recently admitted to charges by the U.S. government over installing software to defeat emissions controls on nearly half a million diesel vehicles. The scandal badly hurt Volkswagen's reputation, wiped out a chunk of its market value, and leading to initiation of government probes.

Mueller, who will also continue to lead Porsche, said his most urgent task is to win back trust for Volkswagen, including the implementation of strict compliance measures.

All said, Mueller now faces the imposing task of steering the automaker through the crisis, amid widening investigations as well as potential litigation that could stretch for years.

The European Commission has called on national authorities to ensure that EU emission standards were not violated.

The crisis has already forced Volkswagen to earmark 6.5 billion euros in the third quarter. The group could face $18 billion in fines, and up to 11 million vehicles world-wide could be affected.

Meanwhile, U.S. environmental regulators upped the ante, saying it would inform all automobile manufacturers of increased emissions-testing activities in the wake of the Volkswagen emissions scandal.

Mueller was born in Chemnitz, in East Germany, and later moved to the West. After completing his high school education in Ingolstadt, Mueller took an apprenticeship as a tool-maker with Audi AG, the luxury car maker owned by Volkswagen.

After his apprenticeship, Mueller studied computer science at Munich University of Applied Sciences. He resumed his career with Audi in 1978 after obtaining his master's degree.

Following the appointment of Winterkorn as Volkswagen boss in 2007, Mueller was named as head of product management of the Volkswagen Group and the VW brand, and as well as General Representative of the Volkswagen Group. Mueller became the head of Porsche in 2010.

Separately, Volkswagen said its supervisory board has approved a new management structure for the group and the brands, as well as for the North America region.

The markets in the USA, Mexico, and Canada will be combined and strengthened to form a new North America region. Effective November 1, the group's activities in the region will be led by Winfried Vahland, formerly chairman of Skoda.

Vahland's successor as chairman of Skoda will be Bernhard Maier, until now board member for sales and marketing of Porsche. Michael Horn continues to remain CEO of Volkswagen of America.

At group level, the management structure will be oriented even more systematically to the modular tool-kits. Consequently, a Porsche brand group with Bentley and Bugatti will be established for the sports car and mid-engine tool-kit.

The Audi brand group with Lamborghini and Ducati will be continued as will the Truck Holding, and the Power Engineering and Financial Services business lines.