25 years ago, on May 7, 1997, the course of Salinen Austria AG was set anew by its privatization. The purchase by Androsch International Management Consulting GmbH and Raiffeisenlandesbank Oberösterreich prevented foreign investors from acquiring the original Austrian company. “Thanks to the broad support of the population in the Salzkammergut, we were able to keep the salt works firmly in Austrian hands – even though members of the government at the time had already promised foreign investors the purchase,” remembers Hannes Androsch, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Österreichische Salinenaktiengesellschaft.
The growth course that was taken at that time turned the only domestic salt producer into one of the leading manufacturers in Europe: since 1997, the production volume has increased from 500,000 tons to 1.2 million tons of salt. While almost nothing was exported back then, today the export rate is more than 50 percent. The Salinen Group, which also includes Salzwelten, Salinen Immobilien and sales subsidiaries in southern and south-eastern Europe, has grown to over 550 employees in 2022. Investments of more than 300 million euros in salt mining and production as well as a strategy change from road salt to salt specialties have made the company fit for the future over the last 25 years.
With its participation in the Turkish group Safir, which has large salt mines, Salinen Austria was able to create a second mainstay, combined with a corresponding market expansion. This option is an additional safeguard for the Austrian locations and their jobs. Overall, international competitiveness can be strengthened.
Source: Nachrichten
