Volkswagen has stopped merger talks after deciding the smaller firm, its major shareholder, was not ready for such a move.
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The two companies had planned to meet today (18 May) to plan the merger after the financial crisis halted heavily indebted Porsche’s plan to raise its stake in VW to 75%, Reuters reported.
“We recognised at the end of the week that Porsche is lacking several fundamental conditions for the discussions,” a VW spokesman told the news agency.
Porsche does not have a strategy for a possible integration of the two companies and has to sort out internally where it is headed, VW was reported to have said.
It was now completely open when the talks would continue, the VW spokesman said.
Porsche declined to comment though a spokesman was quoted as saying its supervisory board would meet on Monday.
VW chairman Ferdinand Piech last week named VW CEO Martin Winterkorn as his candidate to head any merged group, adding it was unlikely Porsche boss Wendelin Wiedeking would be happy to stay on in a more “lowly” role. Such comments from Piech, who is also a major shareholder in Porsche, have ended the careers of other managers, Reuters noted.
Seeking to find a solution to its financing problems for the VW takeover, Porsche itself had suggested VW might take over its sports car business, a person “with knowledge of the matter” told Reuters.
At a meeting in Hanover at the end of March, Porsche had asked VW to examine if that was possible, the anonymous source told the news agency.
