Tampere ski resort files for bankruptcy, putting next winter at risk

Mustavuori Oy, which operates Tampere’s only ski resort, has filed for bankruptcy, making skiing at the Mustavuori resort in the city’s Kalkku district unlikely next winter, Yle reports.

The bankruptcy application was filed with the Pirkanmaa District Court on Monday. The company said its financial difficulties and insolvency followed three consecutive loss-making seasons.

Mustavuori Oy board chair Minni Suni attributed the situation to sharply rising costs, inflation, weaker purchasing power and short winters. The company’s majority owner is Varala Sports Institute, where Suni is director of wellbeing services.

Other shareholders include sports clubs such as Tampere Slalom Club, Tampere Snowboarders and Mustavuori Trailcrew, which operates lift-assisted mountain biking.

The city of Tampere owns the Mustavuori land and buildings, while Mustavuori Oy owns the lifts. The company has a 10-year agreement with the city to provide slope operations. The agreement is a competitively tendered right-of-use contract rather than a standard lease, and runs from 2019 to 2029.

Mustavuori Oy had sought a solution with its owners, creditors, financiers, partners and the city. Discussions included new ownership arrangements and reducing the company’s cost structure, but they did not produce the desired result.

Suni said the company ultimately wanted changes to its agreement with the city. The city considered the contract binding until 2029, while there was no clear view of what would happen afterwards.

The sports clubs that own shares in the company said they were disappointed with the city. They said a plan and financing package had been assembled but collapsed over what they described as an unsuitable service agreement and uncertainty over a reasonable rent after the agreement ends.

Jukka Etu-Seppälä, Tampere’s director of youth and sports services, said the changes proposed by Mustavuori Oy were too extensive for the city to accept. He said the city had a binding, competitively tendered agreement and had to comply with the law, noting that three other applicants had also taken part in the tender.

According to Etu-Seppälä, Mustavuori’s tender offer had been clearly the cheapest. The company had also been allowed to choose between the Hervanta and Mustavuori slopes. Etu-Seppälä said Hervanta had a north-facing slope where snow lasted longer and an established customer base, while Mustavuori’s south-facing slope presented more challenging conditions.

Deputy mayor Anne-Mari Jussila, who is responsible for the city’s sports services, said the city would not take over the slope operations. She said discussions would continue with sports clubs and that the city would consider the future once the bankruptcy process became clearer.

The city is likely to consider a new tender for the operations. The nearest other ski slopes are in Sastamala and Pälkäne.