The Volkswagen Group will invest around €51.6 billion in its Automotive Division in the coming five years. Investments in property, plant and equipment will account for €41.3 billion. More than half of this around 57 % will be invested in Germany alone. Besides investments in property, plant and equipment, this total amount includes additions to capitalized development costs of €10.3 billion.
"The Volkswagen Group will help shape the technological turning point in key areas of the automotive industry and, to do this, will continue investing in environmentally friendly technologies, efficient drives and new models. We are systematically pursuing the goals of our Strategy 2018 to further increase our profitability and to make Volkswagen the world’s most future-proof automotive group. The investment program we have now resolved will play a significant role in this", said Prof. Dr. Martin Winterkorn, Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft.
At €27.7 billion, the Group will spend most of the total amount to be invested in property, plant and equipment in the Automotive Division on modernizing and extending the product range of all its brands. The main focus will be on new vehicles, successor models and derivatives in almost all vehicle classes based on modular technology. This will allow the Volkswagen Group to systematically continue its model rollout with a view to tapping new markets and segments. In powertrain production, new generations of engines will be launched with enhanced performance, fuel consumption and emission levels.
In addition, Volkswagen will make cross-product investments of €13.6 billion over the next five years. The Group’s demanding quality targets and the continuous improvement in its production processes mean that the new products also require changes to be made in the press shops, paintshops and assembly facilities. The new plant in North America will begin operating in 2011. Beyond production, investments are planned mainly in the areas of development, quality assurance, genuine parts supply and information technology.
The joint ventures in China are not consolidated and are therefore not included in the above figures. These companies will invest a total of €10.6 billion in the period 2011 to 2015. This amount will be funded in full from the cash flow generated by the Chinese joint ventures.
