Flims, Laax and Falera to take over tourist facilities for 50 million Swiss francs

The municipalities of Flims, Laax and Falera are to protect the tourist infrastructure on the mountain of Weisse Arena Bergbahnen AG from a possible sale and to take it over with a joint company.

The mountain railways and lifts, mountain restaurants, operating buildings, and avalanche protection systems will then be leased and continued to be operated by Weisse Arena Bergbahnen AG. The municipalities are expected to contribute a total of CHF 50 million for this purpose. Referendums on the project will take place at the end of October.

To protect the mountain facilities of Weisse Arena Bergbahnen AG, a subsidiary of the Weisse Arena Group in Laax, from a potential sale to outside investors, they are to be sold to the local company Finanz Infra AG. The company has owned snowmaking facilities since 2005. It will now also take over the remaining tourist infrastructure on the mountain and lease it to Weisse Arena. Weisse Arena Bergbahnen AG will continue to operate the facilities and cover all costs. As the lessee, it will bear all of Finanz Infra's expenses and finance the depreciation required for the maintenance and replacement of facilities. The lease also stipulates a minimum operating period of 300 days per year and the continued existence of discounts for local residents.

The facilities are to be acquired at their residual book value of CHF 94.5 million. The municipalities of Flims, Laax, and Falera are to co-finance the acquisition with a total of CHF 50 million. Laax will contribute CHF 20 million, Falera CHF 10 million, and Flims CHF 2 million, plus CHF 18 million previously contributed to the construction of the FlemX cable car
. Weisse Arena Bergbahnen AG is granting Finanz Infra a loan of CHF 20 million, and CHF 42.5 million will be financed with borrowed capital. As part of the proposal, Finanz Infra AG is to be fully acquired by the three municipalities. Flims, Laax, and Falera will vote on their respective contributions at the end of October.

"The business model is 'sell and lease back,'" project manager Adrian Wolf told the media on Wednesday. "The municipalities and the Weisse Arena Group have been operating the snowmaking systems for 20 years. Now we want to apply the model consistently and expand it to the entire infrastructure on the mountain."

"Fair, balanced, and reasonable."

The initiative to secure the infrastructure originated with the three municipalities, emphasized Franz Gschwend, mayor of Laax and chairman of the board of Finanz Infra AG. The mountain's tourism infrastructure is systemically important, and the region and its tourism industry depend on it not falling into the hands of outside investors. Norbert Good, mayor of Falera, considers the valuation of the assets at their residual book value to be fair. While the takeover project is a major undertaking for the municipalities, it is balanced and sensible. Flims mayor Christoph Schmidt emphasized that the municipalities have been working very well with the Weisse Arena Group for decades and that the Finanz Infra model has also functioned flawlessly for 20 years.

Reto Gurtner confirmed that various financial and tourism investors are likely interested in investing in or acquiring the Weisse Arena Group. However, the President and Delegate of the Weisse Arena Group believes it is right that such important infrastructure be operated in the long term, in the overall interest of the region. He therefore prefers a solution with the municipalities, even if there might have been higher offers in the short term. Weisse Arena Bergbahnen AG will pay enough rent that the municipalities will not have to provide additional financial support, even for larger investments. This has been the case with snowmaking systems for a long time.

The referendums in the three municipalities:

• Falera Municipal Assembly: October 23, 2025
• Laax Municipal Assembly: Friday, October 24, 2025
• Flims Ballot: Sunday, October 26, 2025