Weil added that the carmaker had already said it did not consider job cuts at this scale. "Volkswagen is in a relatively comfortable position because the restructuring process was initiated earlier than at some competitors," he said, arguing that the company and the state would continue to coordinate efforts in the technological shift to ensure an orderly transition. According to a report carried by business newspaper Handelsblatt, Volkswagen CEO Herbert Diess had told the company's board that tens of thousands of jobs are at stake if Volkswagen does not manage to accelerate its shift to e-cars. Diess reportedly said that stiff competition on the e-car market, especially by US carmaker Tesla, which plans to produce up to half a million vehicles per year at its new gigafactory plant near Berlin, would command tough decisions.