Volkswagen (VW) AG extended CEO Martin Winterkorn’s contract by five years, giving the executive the time to complete a merger with Porsche SE and surpass Toyota Motor Corp as the biggest automaker.
VW’s supervisory board unanimously backed the CEO’s appointment through 2016, the Wolfsburg, Germany-based company said yesterday. Winterkorn, 63, took over as CEO on January 1, 2007, and his current contract expires at the end of this year.
Under Winterkorn, Europe’s largest carmaker added Swedish truckmaker Scania AB to its portfolio and is merging with Porsche, maker of the 911 sports car. The CEO plans to double production capacity in China with two new plants and open a factory in the US this year as he seeks to beat Toyota in sales and profitability by 2018.