Austria, carmakers agree to update software of 600,000 diesel cars

VIENNA (Reuters) - Austria's Transport Minister Joerg Leichtfried said on Tuesday he had agreed with carmakers to update the software of 600,000 diesel cars to reduce pollution following a similar deal struck in Germany after a large-scale emissions scandal.

Leichtfried said the deal also included extra payments to buyers of more environmentally friendly cars. He said that for potential buyers of electric cars all available financial help could add up to around 10,000 euros ($11,761.00) per vehicle.

The Transport Ministry said representatives of Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Kia, Ford, Renault, Porsche, Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE), Audi, Seat, Skoda, Hyundai, Mitsubishi and Opel attended the meeting.