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Volkswagen could sell Ducati, MAN – report

The Volkswagen Group is reportedly considering selling off some of its non-core brands to help fund the company's recovery from the 'dieselgate' saga.


Anonymous sources have told Bloomberg that, earlier this week, Volkswagen's senior management team presented a sweeping package of proposals to the supervisory board.

Among the items presented to the board were plans to divest the conglomerate of motorcycle maker Ducati and the MAN truck division.

Analysts who spoke to the business publication said that now might be a good time to offload MAN, as the truck market in Europe is strong.

MAN's Diesel & Turbo division, which specialises in stationary and ship engines, and Renk, which deals with gears and test systems, would also be put up for sale.


Above: 2009 Ducati Sport 1000 S.

The company might also look at consolidating its various components divisions, which currently reside within individual brands. This combined entity would house around 70,000 employees and 24 locations throughout the world.

Both Ford and GM did the same thing over a decade ago with Visteon and Delphi, respectively. While Ford and GM eventually spun these units off as independent businesses, the current plan doesn't envisage Volkswagen selling off its unified components division.

This latest strategy shift is being spearheaded by Matthias Mueller, Volkswagen's CEO, who is trying to navigate the company through its current woes. At the beginning of the dieselgate saga, back in September 2015, the company put aside 16.2 billion euros ($25.1 billion) to deal with the cost of remediation, buy backs, litigation and fines.

The proposals, if approved, will not only give the company a fresh injection of cash from asset sales, but will also allow to the company to focus on electric vehicles and, potentially, jump into the car-sharing fray.

If the board gives the go ahead to some or all of these proposals, it's likely that Mueller will outline these latest moves as part of a presentation he's scheduled to give later this week.

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