Volkswagen's planned takeover of Porsche threatened?

Volkswagen AG's planned takeover of Porsche SE may be threatened by a 3 billion-euro ($4.3 billion) tax bill, Bloomberg reported, citing Sueddeutsche Zeitung.

Negotiators are looking for ways to avoid paying the money, the newspaper said, citing unidentified members of Porsche’s supervisory board. The takeover will fall apart if Volkswagen has to pay the tax, Sueddeutsche added.

The German weekly news magazine Der Spiegel reported on July 18 that VW would pay euro8 billion to get 49.9 percent of Porsche AG and later take the remaining shares.

On Sunday head of Porsche SE's workers' council, Uwe Hueck, said staff will fight the takeover of the sports-car maker by Volkswagen AG..

Hueck said fiercely in an interview that the deal would endanger 11,000 jobs and that "you can't build a Porsche with Polo parts."

The workers' council and the IG Metall trade union are reported to be planning strikes and sit-ins at Porsche plants in Zuffenhausen and Weissbach.

In whatsoever scenarios, absorbing Porsche AG would add a 10th brand to Volkswagen's line-up that ranges from VW compact models to high-end Bugattis and Lamborghinis to heavy trucks.

That would fulfill the idea of creating an integrated automotive group that the two parties set as a goal in May when debt-laden Porsche dropped plans to take full control of VW, in which it already has 51 percent.