By David Shepardson
(Reuters) - A federal judge on Thursday granted final approval to a plan for Volkswagen AG (DE:VOWG_p) to pay at least $1.22 billion to fix or buy back nearly 80,000 3.0-liter vehicles in the United States linked to the German automaker's diesel emissions cheating scandal.
At a court hearing in San Francisco, U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer also said he was granting final approval to German auto supplier Robert Bosch GmbH's separate settlement, under which it will pay $327.5 million to U.S. diesel VW owners for its role in developing the engines.
Breyer said he was overruling all objections and called the settlements, in which Bosch admitted to no wrongdoing, "fair, reasonable and adequate."
Last fall, Breyer approved a separate settlement for Volkswagen worth up to $14.7 billion, requiring it to buy back 475,000 2.0-liter polluting vehicles that emitted up to 40 times legally allowable emissions.
Owners of 3.0 liter vehicles who opt for fixes will get compensation of between $7,000 and $16,000 from Volkswagen if emissions fixes are approved in a timely fashion.
Volkswagen, the best-selling automaker worldwide in 2016, could be forced to pay up to $4.04 billion if regulators do not approve fixes for all 3.0 liter vehicles.
In total, VW has now agreed to spend up to $25 billion in the United States to address claims from owners, environmental regulators, U.S. states and dealers and to make buyback offers.
In April, Volkswagen, which admitted to circumventing the emissions control system in diesel vehicles sold in the United States, was sentenced to three years probation after pleading guilty to three felony counts.
Under the settlement, Volkswagen agreed to sweeping reforms, new audits and oversight. Over the next three years, VW must test all of its U.S. vehicles using portable emissions measurement system testing - a method designed to capture real world emissions and deter cheating.
Separately, VW's U.S. unit said on Thursday it had named a KPMG LLP director, Stephanie C. Davis, as its chief compliance officer.
Volkswagen said Davis has worked at the audit, tax, and advisory firm on compliance issues. Last month, former Deputy U.S. Attorney General Larry Thompson was tapped to serve as independent monitor of Volkswagen for three years under a Justice Department plea agreement over its excess emissions.
Volkswagen Group of America Chief Executive Hinrich Woebcken said Davis will sit on the executive team and "has a proven record of furthering compliance-related goals through pragmatic solutions that achieve measurable results."