The Jungfrau Railway Group can look back on a good business performance in the first semester of 2012. It achieved an operating revenue of CHF 75.1 million, an increase of CHF 3.4 million or 4.8 per cent compared to the previous year. The increase in revenue was primarily due to higher income generated by the energy business thanks to the new production plant at the Lütschental power station.

The excursion traffic to the Jungfraujoch – Top of Europe developed very favourably. The Jungfrau Railway is celebrating its centenary in 2012 and achieved record figures in the first semester of its anniversary year: some 339,400 guests visited the Jungfraujoch, more than at any other time in its history. The decisive factor for the increase was mainly the flourishing Asian business. The fact that the company has continued to cultivate the Asian market intensively and strengthen the Jungfraujoch – top of Europe brand is clearly bearing fruit. The result could have been even better, had it not been for the strong winds and heavy snowfall that led to closure of the Jungfraujoch on five days.

In contrast to the excursion traffic to the Jungfraujoch, winter-sport business was mediocre. The weak Euro in comparison to the Swiss franc led to a reduction in the number of guests from neighbouring countries taking ski holidays in the Jungfrau Region. The very cold period in February 2012 also had a negative effect on visitor numbers. The Jungfrau Ski Region, in which the Jungfrau Railway Group has a 63% revenue share, recorded 901,400 skier visits at the end of the winter season, a drop of 6.3 per cent. The resultant revenue from the winter-sport business for the Jungfrau Railway Group was CHF 18 million, equivalent to a drop of 7.1 per cent.
In the first semester of 2012, the Jungfrau Railway Group achieved a profit of CHF 10.6 million, thus showing a half-year result of 4.6 per cent below that of the previous year. Costs exceeded those of last year owing to expenditure on the centenary and additional staff. The company recorded an operative result (EBIT) of CHF 13.2 million and achieved an EBIT margin of 17.6 per cent.

Prospects
The Jungfrau Railway Group has made a good start to the second semester of 2012. In July and August 2012, a total of 264,494 people travelled to the Jungfraujoch and both months recorded the highest frequencies in the history of the Jungfrau Railway. Based on the excellent level of bookings, the Jungfrau Railway is optimistic that growth for the most important pillar of income – excursion traffic to the Jungfraujoch – will continue.
The Jungfrau Railway Group is still facing a huge challenge from the unchanged exchange-rate situation in Europe. The company anticipates that the number of holiday guests will also be below average during the coming winter season.