Updated | Vienna Airport says no changes expected in management or at MIA

VIE seeks replacement for chief financial and operations officers • In Malta, Karl Dander tipped to replace interim CEO

Malta International Airport
Malta International Airport

Vienna International Airport has quelled rumours that changes in its management in Vienna would trickle down to Malta, where non-executive director Karl Dandler could be tipped for CEO.

VIE is one of the owners of MIA.

An announcement appearing in the Austrian newspaper Wiener Zeitung on 27 March has invited applications for both the job of chief financial officer and chief operations officer, two posts which at VIE translate as joint CEOs.

The announcement was unexpected to insiders who spoke to MaltaToday, remarking that both incumbents – the former MIA chief executive Julian Jaeger and Gunther Ofner – had served just one term in their positions when it would have been expected that their contracts would have been renewed automatically for a second term.

The undercurrents in management shuffling can perhaps be partly explained by the political manoeuvring that usually occurs at VIE, itself 20% owned by the city of Vienna and 20% by the province of Lower Austria, and often the subject of polarised approaches to management positions.

While it was unclear as to whether the changes in Vienna could prompt further change at Malta International Airport, whose shareholders have been looking for buyers according to other news sources, VIE said such rumours were "wrong".

"According to VIE's ownership structure, with 40% in public hands and with transparency rules for stock-listed companies, it is legally necessary to publish these announcements when a management period ends. These announcements can be seen as a formal act. We do not expect any changes at VIE as the supervisory board at VIE is very satisfied with the work of the actual management board.

"We further do not see any need for changes at MIA especially as Alan Borg was confirmed as the new CEO just a short time ago and the management board at MIA is doing an excellent job," VIE said in a statement to MaltaToday.

Reliable sources speculated with MaltaToday that Vienna could be targeting long-standing chief financial officer Austin Calleja and recently appointed CEO Alan Borg – the first Maltese national to occupy the role – to be both replaced by non-executive director Karl Dandler.

The move would follow on the sudden departure of Markus Klaushofer as CEO in January 2015, who was replaced by Borg as temporary CEO.

Changes in ownership

In 2013, news that both majority shareholders SNC-Lavalin and VIE were planning to sell of their stakes came as a surprise news to the market.

Canadian engineering giant SNC-Lavalin are 36.1% shareholders in Malta Mediterranean Link Consortium (MMLC) together with Vienna International Airport with 53.24%, and the Bianchi Group, with 10.63%.

The MMLC owns 40% of MIA. VIE then owns another 10.1%, while the Maltese government owns 20% and the public participation is of 29.9%.

Then it was reported that Flughafen Wien, effectively the operator of Vienna International Airport, was “considering its options” for Malta. Julian Jaeger had told the Austrian press that MIA was still yielding a profit, and that the company’s shares were ‘locked up’ at MIA until 2017.

In June 2014, Michael Bianchi, of the Bianchi Group, also resigned from the MIA board, citing personal reasons.