Bernhard Maier: Shaping the Industry’s Future

Spiralling demand for ŠKODAs currently outstrips supply. How do you plan to make up for this shortfall in production capacities?
Yes, this lack of capacity is indeed our bottleneck. So we are in a situation where we need to squeeze as much as possible out of our current capacities at each of our plants in order to bridge the gap until a new factory is built. The Group’s board of directors has already given us the green light to find a site and draw up blueprints. If everything goes according to plan, from 2023 we could for example produce there the KAROQ and the ATECA. But no final decision has been made.

Which events from the past year would you say will become milestones in ŠKODA’s history?
Lots of decisions spring to mind. Within the Group, we are assuming responsibility for India and the Russian region. The Group has also entrusted us to develop the new generation of the Volkswagen PASSAT and the ŠKODA SUPERB. From 2023, the two models will be produced at our Kvasiny plant. At the same time, we introduced seven new products, including the new SCALA and the sporty KODIAQ RS. Another important milestone is surely our biggest ever investment program: In the next four years, we will be investing EUR 2 billion into the development of alternative drives and new mobility services.

Let’s take a look at what lies ahead. What will ŠKODA be presenting at this year’s Geneva Motor Show, which is about to start in a couple of days’ time?
Our new compact model, the SCALA, is celebrating its motor show debut. The world premiere in Tel Aviv in early December last year was an exceptional moment that gained a very positive response from the world’s media.

Besides the SCALA, we will be unveiling our new city SUV, the KAMIQ, to the global public. This is another step forward in our SUV offensive and rounds off our offer at the lower end of the range. It gives the SUV program a distinct hierarchy with a clear product and brand identity.

And there will be other highlights which we will present in Geneva – stay tuned!

And what product innovations will you be rolling out as the year progresses?
I don’t want to give too much away at the moment, but one thing is for sure – more than 30 new models will make their way to market by the end of 2022. More than 10 of these will be partially or fully electric.

One of these new models will be the new generation of the brand’s iconic OCTAVIA. It´s celebrating its 60th birthday this year. With the new version, we take a huge leap in design, connectivity and driver assistance systems. This year we are launching e-mobility. This is a truly exceptional moment in our company’s 124-year history. Against this backdrop, we will be showcasing our first plug-in hybrid and first electric-only car.

What challenges will ŠKODA be facing this year?
For the whole automotive industry 2019 will be a pivotal year: we are preparing intensively ourselves intensively for the new EU emission standards that will be mandatory from 2020. The new WLTP-emission standard will also take up capacity. All this is compounded by uncertainty on global markets, prompted in part by Brexit and the further escalation of the trade conflict between the US and China. These problems will dampen the world economy severely until they are resolved. As a result, the forecasts in our largest single market China stay volatile.

The Group has also given us new tasks. For example, we are in charge of the INDIA 2.0 project and we have taken over responsibility for the Russian region and preparations for the production of the new-generation PASSAT and SUPERB, with their entire product families being made at the Kvasiny plant starting in 2023.Other important milestones will include digital transformation and expansion into new markets.

We are clearly not going to be twiddling our thumbs this year. (smiles)