SkiStar, the Scandinavian ski resort group that runs several of the region’s leading resorts including Åre in Sweden and Hemsedal and Trysil in Norway, is in talks to take a majority share in an Austrian ski lift operator which runs the ski centre at St Johann in Tirol.
To be precise, Skistar’s corporate statement is: “SkiStar AB has been invited to participate in a preferential rights issue for shares in St Johanner Bergbahnen GmbH. Acceptance of the offer means ownership of about 68% of the company’s shares. In conjunction with the offer, a letter of intent was signed between SkiStar and representatives of the three largest current shareholders (representing 91% of current shares) stating that they will not participate in the share issue.” “St Johann is a good place to establish SkiStar in the Alps. Through our knowledge, the destination’s geographical location and a positive hotel expansion in St Johann, we see potential for developing the destination,” said Mats Årjes, SkiStar’s CEO. St Johann in Tirol is a historic, traditional ski resort area located in the Austrian Tirol 125km from Munich and 95km from Innsbruck, and borders on Kitzbühel. The ski area has about 300,000 skier days per year. “Through this acquisition we will be able to offer our guests a European ski resort that complements our Scandinavian destinations. It also presents an opportunity to promote St Johann as a SkiStar destination for a European audience with a focus on family ski experiences,” added Mats Årjes.
