Jungfrau Records Successful First Half Of The Year
Jungfraubahn Holding AG announced in an ad hoc announcement in accordance with Article 53 of the Listing Rules that the Jungfraubahn Group can look back on a successful first half of the year. Both the Jungfraujoch and the Erlebnisberge recorded a pleasing increase in guests. Operating income of 132.5 million francs resulted in a half-year profit of 35 million francs. CEO Urs Kessler has decided to step down as chairman of the management board after the general meeting of Jungfraubahn Holding AG in June 2025, as the Jungfraubahn Group is now debt-free again and on the road to success. This deadline leaves enough time for an orderly succession planning process.
In the first half of 2023, the Jungfrau Railway Group has definitely overcome the pandemic. Especially the guests from India, Southeast Asia, South Korea or the USA are catching up on many trips that could not take place during the Covid years.
The company achieved an EBITDA of 63.1 million francs with operating income of 132.5 million francs. In the first half of 2023, the Jungfrau Railway Group achieved its best result to date with a half-year profit of 35.0 million francs. In the record year 2019, the half-year profit was 23.9 million francs.
Increasing frequencies at Jungfraujoch – Top of Europe
The number of guests at Jungfraujoch – Top of Europe continued to develop positively and is therefore significantly higher than in the same period last year. Compared to the record year 2019, there is still a gap of 11%. This is due to weaker group business as there is a lack of flight connections and there are still bottlenecks in issuing visas.
Net traffic revenue in the Jungfraujoch – Top of Europe segment amounted to 55.7 million francs, an increase of 109.5% compared to the same period last year. The guest mix, with an increased proportion of individual foreign travelers, contributed in particular to this.
More guests on the adventure mountains – solid winter season
At the adventure mountains, the Jungfrau Railway Group recorded net traffic income of 13.1 million francs, which corresponds to an increase of 48.5%. With the exception of the Lauterbrunnen-Mürren mountain railway, the number of guests at the adventure mountains reached pre-pandemic levels again. New record values were achieved on the First and Harderbahn in June 2023. In the first half of 2023, the Harderbahn achieved 302,900 ascents and descents, an increase of 56.0% compared to the same period last year. At Firstbahn there were 253,400 guests in the first half of the year (down), which corresponds to an increase of 68.9% compared to the same period in 2022. With 149,900 visitors, the Lauterbrunnen-Mürren (BLM) mountain railway had 38.2% more guests than in the same period in 2022.
In winter sports, 929,900 skier visits were recorded in the reporting period in the first half of 2023, 12.1% fewer first-time visitors than in the same period in 2022. The Jungfrau Railway Group's share of net traffic income from winter sports fell slightly by 7.1% in the reporting period. to 25.5 million francs - compared to the previous year's record figure of 27.5 million francs.
The first half of 2023 showed how important the new V-Bahn with Eiger Express and Männlichenbahn is not only for winter sports, but also for spring and summer guests. The vision of 12 months of high season is becoming more and more a reality. Thanks to the quick and comfortable journey by public transport, the entire Jungfrau Region has become more attractive.
Urs Kessler: “Signs point to a change”
Urs Kessler has decided to step down as CEO after the Annual General Meeting of Jungfraubahn Holding AG in June 2025. After currently 36 years at Jungfrau Railways, including 15 years as CEO, “the signs are good for a change at the top of the most important mountain railway company in Switzerland,” says Kessler. “I had imagined successfully completing the V-Bahn project, supporting the introduction and operational implementation in the company for another year or two and then taking on another new task outside the company.” The pandemic put a stop to his plans. “That’s why my timetable, in coordination with the board of directors, now stipulates that I will retire in June 2025,” explains Kessler. “It was important to me that the company was debt-free again, which has been the case since the end of 2022. We also exceeded the highest half-year profit to date from the record year of 2019. This means that in June 2025 I will be able to hand over the operational management staff to other hands with a clear conscience and there will be enough time for an orderly succession plan.”
With his tireless commitment, Urs Kessler and his team have regularly led the Jungfrau Railway Group to new successes. New markets were opened up, the experience mountains were clearly positioned and record results were achieved. The extraordinary sporting and musical events on the Jungfraujoch - Top of Europe, at 3454 meters above sea level, reached people around the world. Born in Gsteigwiler and after an apprenticeship as a company dispatcher, Urs Kessler traveled to the Asian markets as head of sales promotion for Jungfrau Railways in 1987 and built up a network of representatives and the Jungfraujoch - Top of Europe brand there.
“What we particularly appreciate about Urs Kessler is his proximity to his approximately 900 employees, almost all of whom he knows by name, his intensive contacts with the population of the Jungfrau Region and his innovative strength, which he recently demonstrated with the successful realization of the V-Cableway », says Chairman of the Board of Directors Heinz Karrer. The Boards of Directors of Jungfraubahn Holding AG and Berner Oberland-Bahnen AG wish Urs Kessler continued success as CEO until his departure in June 2025. The succession process will start shortly. A successor to Urs Kessler is to be appointed by the end of 2024 at the latest.
Sustainable travel with more rail instead of road
The car-free towns of Wengen and Mürren will be able to count on even better public transport connections in the future. The work on the Grütschalp-Mürren adhesion railway at the Lauterbrunnen-Mürren mountain railway (BLM) is well advanced. Due to the delay in the delivery of rolling stock, the completely renovated mountain railway will be put into operation in June 2024 instead of December 2023. The “Wengen Shuttle” between Lauterbrunnen and Wengen will start operating as planned when the timetable changes in December 2023. Also at this time, the stop and the Park+Ride Matten near Interlaken of the alliance partner Berner Oberland-Bahnen AG will go into operation. This is intended to relieve the Lütschinen valleys even more from motorized traffic.
Promoting rail instead of road is also an essential part of the Jungfrau Railway Group's sustainability strategy. In the first half of the year, the focus was on the further development of integrated sustainability management. ISO 14001 certification, which specifies the requirements for an environmental management system, is scheduled to take place in the fall. The reporting will also be prepared in accordance with the standards of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) for the 2023 reporting year, including determining the relevant topics through a materiality analysis.
Outlook
The trend of the first half of 2023 continued in the high season months of July and August. Business development in the second half of 2023 will continue to be characterized by global uncertainties that the company cannot influence: the war in Ukraine, general global economic, price and currency developments as well as bottlenecks in intercontinental flight connections and visa issuance some Asian countries.
The Jungfrau Railway Group hopes to take the final step towards normality in the 2023 financial year. To this end, further normalization of the international travel markets - especially for group trips - is necessary.
To the half-year report 2023 >>>>
