[Aju News DB]
South Korea's government said Tuesday it will announce next week whether to revoke the certifications of Volkswagen vehicles that are suspected of having obtained permission to be sold here with fake reports.
Earlier this month, the Ministry of Environment said it might nullify the certifications of 79 vehicle models of Audi Volkswagen Korea which is accused of doctoring documents on the cars' noise level, fuel efficiency and emissions.
The ministry said the final decision will be announced next Tuesday, about a week after a public hearing on the matter was held to give the German carmaker a chance to explain its actions.
During the closed-door hearing held on Monday, the automaker said there could have been some mistakes in the process of drafting relevant reports, according to ministry officials who asked not to be named. Johannes Thammer, the chief of the automaker's local unit, and several other company officials attended the hearing.
The 79 vehicle models account for over 70 percent of some 300,000 Audi and Volkswagen cars sold here since 2007.
A Volkswagen Korea executive has already been indicted on various charges that include forgery and a violation of the local Clean Air Conservation Act.
Meanwhile, Audi Volkswagen Korea has voluntarily suspended sales of the problematic vehicle models as of Monday.
(Yonhap)
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
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