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LONDON: BMW will be following Audi out of the electric Formula E series at the end of next year after announcing its departure on Wednesday. Audi said on Monday it would withdraw as a works team to focus on the Dakar Rally and endurance racing including an eventual return to Le Mans. BMW said in a statement a day after pre-season testing ended in Spain that its journey in Formula E was "hitting the home stretch" and the group's strategic focus was shifting. "When it comes to the development of e-drivetrains, BMW Group has essentially exhausted the opportunities for this form of technology transfer in the competitive environment of Formula E," it added. BMW's Formula E team is run by US-based Andretti Motorsport. "We look forward to announcing our own plans for the continuation of our Formula E program in due course," Andretti told roadandtrack.com. Formula E's seventh season starts in Chile in January. Other major manufacturers involved include Mercedes, Porsche, … [Read more...] about BMW follows Audi to the Formula E exit

INGOLSTADT, Germany: Audi will withdraw from the all-electric Formula E series as a works team at the end of next year to focus on the Dakar Rally and endurance racing, including an eventual return to Le Mans, the carmaker said on Monday (Nov 30). The Dakar Rally will replace Formula E as the Volkswagen-owned brand's focus, although Audi said customer Formula E teams will be able to use a newly developed powertrain beyond next year. Audi will compete in the Dakar with an electric SUV prototype. "Cross-country rallying will be the spearhead of the factory motorsport commitment in the future," Audi said in a statement. The marque has been involved with Formula E since the series, now a recognised world championship, started in 2014, and won the team title in 2018. Audi said it will enter a new LMDh category class of the world endurance championship, without setting a date for a works return to Le Mans. … [Read more...] about Audi to leave Formula E and focus on Dakar, Le Mans

FRANKFURT: Volkswagen plans to make British luxury carmaker Bentley a subsidiary of its Audi division as it seeks economies of scale among its top-end brands, German trade publication Automobilwoche reported. Bentley, for now overseen by the head of VW's Porsche business, Oliver Blume, will from next year be part of Audi, where VW group Chief Executive Herbert Diess believes it has more potential, Automobilwoche cited company sources as saying. Synergies could include using Audi technology for a new Bentley SUV, it added. Volkswagen, which declined to comment on the report, is reviewing the future of its high-performance brands Lamborghini, Bugatti and Ducati motorcycles as part of broader quest for more economies of scale as it shifts to mass producing electric cars. Sources familiar with the matter told Reuters this month that Volkswagen was working on plans to prepare Lamborghini for a stock market listing. … [Read more...] about VW to have Audi unit oversee UK brand Bentley: Report

BEIJING: German premium automaker Audi AG said on Tuesday it had signed a memorandum of understanding with China's state-owned FAW Group to launch a venture to make premium electric vehicles (EVs). Audi has a long partnership with FAW, which is based in the city of Changchun in the northeast of China, the world's biggest car market. The German firm also plans to make vehicles with Shanghai-based automaker SAIC Motor . Audi said it would produce models based on the Premium Platform Electric (PPE), a base developed with Porsche. It said the new venture would start manufacturing several models in China from 2024. Audi aims to have electrified vehicles make up a third of Chinese sales by 2025. It sold 512,081 vehicles in China in the first nine months of 2020 and about 690,000 vehicles last year. Audi and Porsche's representatives in China said there was no plan for Porsche production at the new venture. EV makers such as home-grown Nio Inc and Xpeng Inc as well as foreign … [Read more...] about Audi to launch new electric vehicle venture with China’s FAW

MUNICH: Rupert Stadler, former chief executive of Audi arrived in court in Munich on Wednesday (Sep 30) to face fraud charges as part of Volkswagen's emissions cheating scandal, which was uncovered by United States regulators five years ago. Volkswagen and Audi were caught disguising excessive diesel pollution by using illegal engine management software to falsify emissions readings during anti-pollution tests. The carmaker initially claimed the fraud was the work of a handful of engineers, and that no senior managers were involved, but testimony from a raft employees led prosecutors to remand Stadler in custody for four months in 2018. He arrived in court in a Mercedes-Benz to face trial which is expected to take until 2022. Stadler is accused of knowingly selling cars which had manipulated engine software and did not comply with environmental standards. Stadler has denied to charges. … [Read more...] about Ex-Audi chief arrives in German court to face dieselgate charges

BUENOS AIRES: Diego Maradona, widely regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time before drug and alcohol addiction marred his career, died on Wednesday at his home in Argentina after suffering a heart attack, his lawyer said. He was 60. Beloved in his homeland after leading Argentina to World Cup glory in 1986 and adored in Italy for taking Napoli to two Serie A titles, Maradona was a uniquely gifted player who rose from the tough streets of Buenos Aires to reach the pinnacle of his sport. He died four years to the day after one of his political heroes, former Cuban leader Fidel Castro, and 15 years to the day after another troubled but talented football folk hero, George Best, whom Maradona cited as one of his boyhood inspirations. Maradona had recently battled health issues and underwent emergency surgery for a subdural haematoma several weeks ago. He suffered a heart attack at his home in the outskirts of Buenos Aires on Wednesday, acquaintances of … [Read more...] about Argentina football legend Diego Maradona dies of heart attack, aged 60

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump said on Tuesday (Apr 21) he was suspending immigration for green-card seekers for 60 days, arguing the controversial move would protect US jobs. Trump offered the first details about a vague announcement he made on Monday night, addressing an issue key to his conservative base as the country is ravaged by the coronavirus pandemic, with more than 43,000 people dead in the US. "By pausing immigration, it will help put unemployed Americans first in line for jobs as America reopens," Trump said at his daily pandemic briefing. "This pause will be in effect for 60 days" he said, adding that he would decide on any extension or changes "based on economic conditions at the time." The Republican president said the order would "only apply to individuals seeking a permanent residency - in other words, those receiving green cards." "It will not apply to those entering on a temporary basis," he added. According to US officials who spoke on condition … [Read more...] about Trump says immigration suspension to last 60 days

SINGAPORE - Covid-19 vaccinations for people aged 60 to 69 will start around the end of March, with the rest of the population to follow suit in April, said Health Minister Gan Kim Yong on Friday (Feb 19). If all goes well and there are no disruptions to the supply, one million more people would have received shots by April. Some 250,000 Singapore residents have been vaccinated to date, with around 110,000 having received their second dose, Mr Gan added. The aim is to get another one million people to take their first dose of the vaccine by early April, added Education Minister Lawrence Wong, who co-chairs the task force tackling the pandemic with Mr Gan. "If all goes according to plan, then we can progressively roll out to the other age groups beyond March," said Mr Wong. "We will continue to monitor the supply of vaccine, because that's the critical issue that will enable us to get vaccines out... We will try our best to ensure that we can get these vaccines to Singapore." … [Read more...] about Seniors aged 60 to 69 in Singapore to get Covid-19 vaccine from March, the rest from April

BEIRUT: More than 60 prisoners broke out of a Lebanese jail on Saturday (Nov 21) and five of them were killed when their car hit a tree while under pursuit, security sources and the state news agency said. They fled from Baabda district prison at dawn after breaking open cell doors, state news agency NNA said, adding security forces had cordoned off surrounding areas. Security forces told Reuters that up to 69 prisoners had escaped and that eight had been caught. Five of the prisoners died after a car they seized crashed into a tree, they said. Authorities have launched an investigation into the jail break, NNA said. In April, Amnesty International said there had been riots inside Lebanese jails and families' sit-in protests calling for the release of prisoners over concerns about the spread of COVID-19 in overcrowded prisons. It said that while the Lebanese government had taken several measures, including some releases, the authorities should prioritise releasing prisoners … [Read more...] about More than 60 prisoners escape Lebanese jail, say security sources

NEW YORK: Goldman Sachs Group Inc has invited 60 executives to become partners, from Jan 1, 2021, making the latest batch one of the bank's smallest since the mid-1990s. Goldman's partners collectively own a small stake in the firm and are the bank's most elite employees, typically taking home million-dollar salary packages and having access to lucrative investment opportunities. Goldman's partnership ranks have nearly doubled since the bank went public in 1999, but have shrunk over the last decade as part of a strategy to make the Wall Street bank less top-heavy and raise the bar for employees seeking to become partners. Under David Solomon, who took over as the bank's chief executive officer in 2018, that trend has continued. Goldman named 69 new partners two years ago during Solomon's first year in the role. The new class consists largely of individuals from the Americas and includes 16 women, Goldman said on Thursday. … [Read more...] about Goldman Sachs names 60 new partners