In the struggle for the future of Klagenfurt Airport, there is a temporary solution: the state of Carinthia will not use the call option. In the session of the state government that continued on Monday, a majority voted against the buyback.

The members of the Carinthian state government, chaired by Governor Peter Kaiser (SPÖ), spent around 14 hours advising. Then a vote was taken and the ÖVP provincial councilors led by Provincial Councilor Martin Gruber (ÖVP) were unable to assert themselves. The request to target the call option was rejected by a majority. The airport will remain majority-owned by the Lilihill Group. Previously, the supervisory board of the state-owned KBV voted in favor of the buyback.

“Unfortunately, it was not possible to bring about a unanimous decision today. The application to exercise the call option was rejected by a majority,” explained Carinthia's governor Peter Kaiser after the vote. "The future of the airport is important for the country, for future generations, for the economy, for industry, for Carinthia as a location. We didn't take the decision lightly today, but you have to keep in mind the overall responsibility for the state, for the city of Klagenfurt, for decades to come. The consequences of exercising the call option were also weighed up with several legal experts, as were the consequences of not buying back the airport. Lengthy legal disputes would ensue, current and existing contracts with airport partners would falter, the reputation of the airport and of Carinthia as a location would be at stake and ultimately one would have to accept a standstill at the airport".

Provincial Councilor Martin Gruber, who in recent weeks has made no secret of the fact that he wants to exercise the call option immediately, is not happy with the result of the vote, but takes note of it. “The majority owner has not kept his previous promises and I can therefore no longer believe that the cooperation will work. I am personally convinced that the buyback would have been the best option. As a Democrat, I take note of the majority decision. However, this decision was not made based on facts from the last four years, but on promises made by the majority owner. The fact that the call option was not exercised today does not mean that it and, above all, the country's control are off the table! I will continue to watch with eagle eyes to ensure that applicable contracts are strictly adhered to and that there is no sale of land," said the member of the Carinthian state government.

At least at the political level, the dispute over Klagenfurt Airport is very unlikely to be over yet. It is to be expected that another discussion could be started at the next opportunity. There is a high probability that this is also because the elections to the Carinthian state parliament are due next year.