Volkswagen AG is negotiating with U.S. chief Stefan Jacoby over terms of his departure as the executive is set to become chief executive officer of Volvo Cars, according to people familiar with the matter.
Jacoby, 52, will replace Stephen Odell, 55, at Volvo Cars, said two people with direct knowledge of the matter, who asked not to be identified because the matter is confidential. Jacoby's talks with VW focus on his contractual obligations to the German carmaker before he leaves, one of the people said.
Jacoby has been Volkswagen's top U.S. executive since September 2007. He has cut costs, designed the first models for the U.S. market, added an assembly plant in Tennessee and moved the headquarters to Virginia from Michigan. His leaving could result in a drain of production know-how to Volvo, the Swedish automaker Zhejiang Geely Holding Co. is taking over from Ford Motor Co., said Aleksej Wunrau, an analyst at ING BHF-Bank AG in Frankfurt.
"Jacoby's departure would be bad news for VW" and may cause frictions within VW's U.S. operations at a time when the Chattanooga plant is about to be opened, Wunrau said.
Michael Lohscheller, who has been in charge of finance in the U.S. since 2007, will run Volkswagen Group of America on an interim basis, while Mark Barnes will do the same for the Volkswagen brand until Jacoby's "contractual situation has been clarified," VW said in a statement late yesterday.
'Holding Talks'
"We are holding contract talks with Stefan Jacoby," Volkswagen said in the statement. "These talks have by no means been concluded yet."
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