Porsche
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to discuss the change to the company structure.
On 3 March 2008, Porsche set the stage for obtaining a plurality stake in the Volkswagen AG. One day later Porsche sought to allay fears it would attempt to force a merger with Volkswagen Group. By September, Porsche owned a 35.14% plurality stake in Volkswagen AG, effectively giving it control over the company. Volkswagen Group expected the move, and welcomed Porsche's investment.
On October 26, 2008, Porsche announced its intent to raise its stake in Volkswagen AG to 75% during 2009.
On 7 January 2009, Porsche's holding in VW AG was raised to 50.76%. Porsche's move automatically triggered a bid for Scania AB, because VW AG already had a controlling position in the Swedish truck-maker. As Porsche had no strategic interest in the company, on 19 January, they
offered the minimum price in that mandatory takeover bid. Porsche SE owned 50.8 percent of Volkswagen Group as of 5 January 2009, and has said it plans to lift the stake to 75 percent before the end of 2009, at that level they could bring VW AG's cash onto Porsche's books.
By March 2009, Porsche SE was aiming for its first ever credit ratings from U.S. rating agencies Standard & Poor's and Moody's.
In its efforts to acquire a majority holding in Volkswagen AG, Porsche built up a large debt burden, aggravated by taxes due on very large paper profits from Volkswagen AG options. By July 2009, Porsche was faced with debts exceeding 10 billion euros. The supervisory board of Porsche finally agreed to a number of arrangements whereby the Qatar Investment Authority would inject a large amount of capital, and Porsche would be merged with Volkswagen Group. On 23 July 2009, Michael Macht was appointed CEO, to replace Wendelin Wiedeking, who is expected to receive a compensation package of 50 million euros.
According to CNBC, "Volkswagen has Sealed the Deal for Porsche" as of 14 August 2009.
On 31 August, reports began circulating that under Volkswagen Group's umbrella, the Cayenne and Panamera will be axed from Porsche's line-up once they complete their model cycles in seven years, so as to reduce competition with Volkswagen's current SUV and saloon offerings. Volkswagen Group believes that it is oversaturated with SUVs and saloons, and will thus restructure Porsche to be a strictly sports car-producing marque. This