FRANKFURT AM MAIN: German prosecutors said Monday they had fined high-end carmaker BMW €8.5 million ($9.6 million) over diesel cars with higher harmful emissions than allowed, while adding the infraction was down to error rather than deliberate fraud.
“Munich prosecutors have ordered a fine of €8.5 million for the administrative offense of negligence in quality control,” investigators said in a statement.
Authorities had been probing BMW since early 2018 over suspicions it could have built a so-called “defeat device” into some diesel cars.
Such technologies allow the vehicle to reduce emissions under test conditions, while emitting far higher levels of pollutants such as nitrogen oxides (NOx) on the road.
In Germany, Volkswagen has paid one billion euros in fines over defeat devices following its 2015 admission that it installed them in 11 million cars worldwide, while high-end subsidiary Audi has paid €800 million.
And last week, prosecutors in Stuttgart said they had opened a “fine proceeding” against Mercedes-Benz maker Daimler over the same suspicions relating to 700,000 cars.
But the number of vehicles showing irregularities in BMW’s case is far smaller, at just under 8,000.
Prosecutors said that they believed “mistaken labelling of the part of the motor control software responsible for exhaust treatment” was behind increased on-road emissions.
“Extensive investigations” had found neither evidence of a purposely designed defeat device, nor of intent to commit fraud by BMW employees, they added.
Rather, “the company had not set up an appropriate quality control system” that could have prevented the error or revealed it after the fact, the prosecutors found.
In its most recent financial data release, BMW said it made a net profit of €1.4 billion between July and September, down 24 percent year-on-year as it contended with tough new emissions tests in the European Union.
Germany fines BMW $9.6 million over diesel emissions
Germany fines BMW $9.6 million over diesel emissions
- Authorities had been probing BMW since early 2018 over suspicions it could have built a so-called ‘defeat device’ into some diesel cars
- The number of vehicles showing irregularities in BMW’s case is far smaller, at just under 8,000
Saudi Arabia’s cultural sector is a new economic engine between Riyadh and Paris, says ambassador
RIYADH: Culture has become a fundamental pillar in bilateral relations between France and Saudi Arabia, according to the French Ambassador to the Kingdom, Patrick Maisonnave.
Maisonnave noted its connection to the entertainment and tourism sectors, which makes it a new engine for economic cooperation between Riyadh and Paris.
He told Al-Eqtisadiah during the opening ceremony of La Fabrique in the Jax district of Diriyah that cultural cooperation with Saudi Arabia is an important element for its attractiveness in the coming decades.
La Fabrique is a space dedicated to artistic creativity and cultural exchange, launched as part of a partnership between the Riyadh Art program and the French Institute in Riyadh.
Running from Jan. 22 until Feb 14, the initiative will provide an open workspace that allows artists to develop and work on their ideas within a collaborative framework.
Launching La Fabrique as a space dedicated to artistic creativity
The ambassador highlighted that the transformation journey in the Kingdom under Vision 2030 has contributed to the emergence of a new generation of young artists and creators, alongside a growing desire in Saudi society to connect with culture and to embrace what is happening globally.
He affirmed that the relationship between the two countries is “profound, even cultural par excellence,” with interest from the Saudi side in French culture, matched by increasing interest from the French public and cultural institutions unfolding in the Kingdom.
Latest estimates indicate that the culture-based economy represents about 2.3 percent of France’s gross domestic product, equivalent to more than 90 billion euros ($106.4 billion) in annual revenues, according to government data. The sector directly employs more than 600,000 people, making it one of the largest job-creating sectors in the fields of creativity, publishing, cinema, and visual arts.
Saudi Arabia benefiting from French experience in the cultural field
Maisonnave explained that France possesses established cultural institutions, while Saudi Arabia is building a strong cultural sector, which opens the door for cooperation opportunities.
This comes as an extension of the signing of 10 major cultural agreements a year ago between French and Saudi institutions, aiming to enhance cooperation and transfer French expertise and knowledge to contribute to the development of the cultural system in the Kingdom.
He added that experiences like La Fabrique provide an opportunity to meet the new generation of Saudi creators, who have expressed interest in connecting with French institutions and artists in Paris and France.
La Fabrique encompasses a space for multiple contemporary artistic practices, including performance arts, digital and interactive arts, photography, music, and cinema, while providing the public with an opportunity to witness the stages of producing artistic works and interact with the creative process.
