Continental plans to present investors with a new strategy within 100 days, chief executive Karl-Thomas Neumann said on Thursday.

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Speaking at the annual general meeting, he said management needed to clarify the direction of its shaky alliance with controlling shareholder Schaeffler as well as the future of its rubber group, Reuters reported.


“What is missing in the end is the overall concept itself. We owe this clarity to all those involved, especially the 133,000 employees currently working for Continental, but also our creditor banks and, of course, our shareholders,” he said.


Neumann added it remained unclear how Continental and Schaeffler would cooperate in future.


He said the EUR11.8bn (US$15.37bn) syndicated credit line renegotiated in January, and a EUR3.5bn tranche due for repayment in August 2010, in particular, continued to concern management.

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“We have been able to comply with the covenants in the first quarter of this year, however it remains a major challenge to hold to the limits agreed upon for the remainder of the year,” he said.


“Our confidence that we can successfully deal with this is unshaken.”


He said Continental was still examining whether a sale of assets – mainly tyre activities bundled in the rubber group – would be the best way to pay off the tranche due in August of next year, the Reuters report said.


Earlier this month, Continental and Schaeffler Group announced they had reached a joint purchasing agreement that Schaeffler said would achieve cost benefits of up to EUR400m in three years.