Volkswagen has reportedly been asked by the United States' Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to manufacture electric cars in the U.S. after using onboard software to cheat on emissions tests. Last September the German automaker admitted that it had used rigged onboard software to make diesel engines run cleaner during lab tests.   

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German newspaper Welt am Sonntag reported the EPA's offer to VW. The federal agency is in talks with VW to figure out how the carmaker will fix the almost 600,000 diesel vehicles that emit up to 40 times the legal limit.

Around 11 million cars worldwide have been affected by the emissions scandal. Among that figure 8.5 million vehicles are in Europe.

The German newspaper reported that the EPA requested VW to build electric vehicles (EVs) at its Tennessee plant, according to International Business Times. It also asked VW to build a network of EV charging stations.

Some Volkswagen cars already feature electric and hybrid engines. Thus, it is unclear if the EPA wants VW to equip existing models or build brand new e-cars, according to Reuters.

A VW spokesman reportedly admitted that the automaker is in talks with the EPA. However, he did not reveal information about the content or state of the discussions.

Last September scientists at a University of West Virginia lab tested several VW diesel vehicles. It discovered that the emissions were 40 times the U.S. legal limit.

The German company cheated by using a "defeat device" that showed lower emissions during lab tests than road tests. Volkswagen is facing investigations in the U.S., France, and Germany.

In other EV news, Volkswagen's new e-Golf will have almost 30 percent more range. That is due to an upgrade of the carmaker's batteries.

The e-Golf's battery cells will grow to 37 amp hours. This improvement will not require changes to the battery's design.

At last month's Consumer Electronics Show (CES) VW also unveiled its gesture-based infotainment controls that will support Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.

VW's electric car will also include improved voice recognition. Another feature includes wireless charging in the car's rear armrests to allow passengers in the back to juice up their devices.

Here's info about the scope of the VW emissions scandal: