BRUSSELS: EU antitrust regulators are investigating allegations of a cartel among a group of German carmakers, the European Commission said, a measure that could result in hefty fines for the companies.
The Commission and its German counterpart were tipped off about the possible cartel, the EU competition authority said.
"The European Commission and the Bundeskartellamt have received information on this matter, which is currently being assessed by the Commission. It is premature at this stage to speculate further," the EU executive said, without giving more details.
German magazine Der Spiegel reported on Friday that VW, BMW , Audi, Porsche may have colluded to fix the prices of diesel emissions treatment systems using industry committees.
Sixty industry committees made up of about 200 employees discussed vehicle development, brakes, petrol and diesel engines, clutches and transmissions as well as exhaust treatment systems, Der Spiegel reported, citing a letter sent to cartel authorities.
It said Volkswagen admitted to possible anti-competitive behavior in a letter to cartel authorities on July 4. Volkswagen and Daimler declined to comment on Friday and BMW was not available to comment.
Companies found guilty of breaching EU cartel rules face fines of as much as 10 percent of their global turnover.
The car industry has been hit with billion-euro fines on both sides of the Atlantic in recent years for cartels related to various parts such as lighting systems, engine coolers and bearings.
In another development, carmaker SEAT sees compressed-natural-gas (CNG) as an alternative fuel to diesel, the chief executive of the Spanish Volkswagen division said on Saturday.
SEAT was betting on CNG in order to compensate for falling diesel car sales, its chief executive Luca de Meo was quoted as saying in part of a report due to run in full in the July 24 issue of Automobilwoche.
"We have to offer customers a sensible solution. The debate about diesel is continuing and therefore we need other options, he said.
While SEAT, bought by Volkswagen in 1986, was less exposed to diesel dependency than premium carmakers, it still had to observe market dynamics very carefully, de Meo said.
"If the mayor of Barcelona decides to close the city centre for Euro-6-diesels, then customers will probably no longer buy diesel cars," he said.
The finance chief of sister company Porsche, Lutz Meschke, also interviewed, said that discussions about a diesel-free future were underway.
"In our segment, we have the right answers with plug-in hybrids and purely electrical drives. Why should I anxiously hold on to a diesel?" he said.
