AD_MAGAZINE_352

10 FROM THE TOP » JOHANNES ROSCHECK, AUDI February 2019 | AutoData P hD in mechanical and indus- trial engineering and CEO of Audi do Brasil since February 2017, the Austrian Johannes Roscheck has a deep connection with Brazil in his career. As one of his first works at the German he- adquarters, from 1995 to 1997, he participated in the team that deve- loped the project of the VW-Audi factory construction in Sao Jose dos Pinhais, PR. He came to Brazil and stayed from 1997 to 2001 exactly in that same unit, as CFO and later direc- tor of the division – reason why he is fluent in Portuguese. Later, still for Audi, worked in the United Sta- tes and Hungary. The executive received AutoData’s journalist team for his first interviewon this From the Top section at the company’s offices in the South Zone of Sao Paulo, capital, where he talked about the Inovar-Auto heritages, Rota 2030, the Brazilian vehicle competitive- ness, strategy for the internal ma- rket in the premium segment and much more. Check out next. Interviewed by Leandro Alves, Márcio Stéfani, Marcos Rozen and S Stéfani The challenge of the four rings incentive program, but it gave origin to a discussion about the topic. Be- sides, many important things did not enter the program, but I am convinced that once this new government is fully established we will be able to define that soon. What about the question regarding the IPI credit that remained from Inovar-Auto to the low-volumemanufacturers, which had already been agreed with the pre- vious government? This has not been solved yet and is an important thing for us. We intend to spe- ak to the newgovernment fromFebruary about this subject. There was an agre- ement with the previous government: first it would be a separate decree, then it entered as part of the Rota program, which although not being the ideal so- During Sao PauloAuto Show, in Novem- ber, you have expressed concern about the lack of definition on Rota 2030. Now that the program has become a law, is it an encouragement for larger Brazilian production of Audi models? The approval was a very important step, but there are still some definitions and important details for us to solve. We’re moving on with our local production planning in Brazil, but it’s too soon for something more concrete. The approved regime was essentially focused on R&D. Was that what you ex- pected? During the final approval phase of Rota there was a discussion about local in- centives in Brazil, which was a very big strategic mistake. The industry lost credibility because Rota is not an