VW To Review Its Brands; Porsche And Skoda Not For Sale

During yesterday's Annual Media Conference in Wolfsburg, Volkswagen Group announced the imminent reveal of a number of important models from the corporation's core brands. The 2.5-hour-long news conference also shined more light on VAG's plans to restructure its portfolio with first details to be revealed later this year.

"We are reviewing our brand portfolio, in the second half of the year we can talk more about this," Volkswagen Group CEO Herbert Diess told the journalists also saying the manufacturer will seek to optimize its operations and improve profitability.

Apparently, some of the Group's marques could be up for sale during the next few years, but the future is safe for Porsche and Skoda, which are currently the two most profitable brands of Volkswagen. On the other hand, both the German sports car maker and the Czech affordable automaker rely entirely on VAG platforms and won't be able to develop next-generation platforms without input from VW.

"Sometimes it is underestimated how much Porsche is intertwined in the group. They depend on 80 percent on Audi platforms. The Porsche model 17.5 percent margin is only possible within the group. The same applies to Skoda," Diess added.

Reports from 2018 and 2017 suggested that some of Volkswagen Group's non-core businesses, including Scania, MAN, and Ducati, might be offered to other automakers. All the three companies are still part of VAG's portfolio but they could be among the first to be considered potentially in danger of being sold under the new restructuring plan.

During the media meeting yesterday, it was also confirmed the brands under Volkswagen's umbrella should produce no less than 22 million electric vehicles over the next ten years. To achieve this super ambitious goal, the German manufacturer will launch 70 (up from 50) electric or plug-in hybrid vehicles from its marques.