Troubled German auto giant Volkswagen could forego a dividend payment to shareholders for 2015 in the wake of the massive diesel engine manipulation scandal, the German news agency DPA reported on Tuesday.

While a final decision has not yet been taken, "there is no sign that shareholders might even be able to hope for a single cent" in a dividend payout, DPA quoted an unnamed supervisory board member as saying.

Contacted by AFP, a VW spokesman declined to comment on the report.

"We will publish details of our business figures at our annual balance sheet news conference on April 28," he said.

In the past, VW has been very generous to its shareholders and last year paid out 4.86 euros per preference share and 4.80 euros per ordinary share.

But the carmaker is currently engulfed in a scandal of global proportions after it was revealed that it installed software into 11 million diesel engines worldwide that intentionally skewed emissions values during testing.

And the huge cash mountain it has amassed in recent years is likely to be needed to pay for the still incalculable fines and legal costs connected with the affair.

VW has had to postpone both its annual news conference and its annual shareholder meeting as it struggles to cope with the fallout from the affair.