(Vienna, October 3, 2024) - Brigitte Ederer will take over as Chairwoman of the Supervisory Board of ÖBB Holding on October 3, 2024. This was decided today at an extraordinary meeting of the Supervisory Board. She succeeds Andrea Reithmayer, who resigned from her position last Sunday. Brigitte Ederer was already Chairwoman of the Supervisory Board of ÖBB from 2014 to 2018 and has been a full member since 2020. The Federal Ministry for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology (BMK) has appointed Cornelia Breuß as a new member of the Supervisory Board.
"I would like to thank Andrea Reithmayer most sincerely for her work over the past four years. Under her supervision, ÖBB, as an important climate protection company in our country, has set a key course and at the same time weathered major crises in a stable manner. From the largest railroad expansion program to vehicle procurement - ÖBB is well positioned today and well prepared for future challenges. I would also like to thank Brigitte Ederer for taking over the chair of the Supervisory Board of ÖBB-Holding AG. I am firmly convinced that this task will remain in experienced hands," says Climate Action Minister Leonore Gewessler.
Brigitte Ederer began her career after studying economics in the economics department of the Vienna Chamber of Labor. She then held key political positions, including Secretary of State for Europe and was responsible for Austria's accession to the European Union. In 2000, she joined the Managing Board of Siemens AG Austria, where she was CEO between 2006 and 2014. In 2010, she was appointed to the Managing Board of Siemens AG, which she left in 2013.
Cornelia Breuß, Head of the Mobility Section at the Federal Ministry for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology, was newly appointed to the Supervisory Board. She was primarily responsible for the introduction of the "KlimaTicket” at the Ministry and worked in various areas of the ÖBB Group, most recently as an authorized signatory and Head of Communications at ÖBB-Infrastruktur AG.
Andrea Reithmayer will remain with the ÖBB Group and will take on a management function in the real estate division of ÖBB Infra. The law graduate held various management positions at the Austria Research Center between 1991 and 2006, most recently as Head of Group Finance. Between 2007 and 2008, she set up an infrastructure company for the University of Leoben. In 2008, she moved to the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences in Vienna, where she was Vice Rector until 2020. In this role, she was also responsible for the site development, expansion and modernization of numerous university buildings at BOKU before taking over as Chair of the Supervisory Board of ÖBB Holding and Deputy Chair of ÖBB Passenger Transport and Railcargo in June 2020.
The Supervisory Board of ÖBB-Holding AG will be composed as follows from 3.10.2024:
Brigitte Ederer (Chairwoman), Kurt Weinberger (1st Deputy Chairman), Herbert Kasser (2nd Deputy Chairman), Elfriede Baumann, Cornelia Breuß, Markus Himmelbauer, Angela Köppl, Cattina Leitner.
Roman Hebenstreit (3rd deputy), Gerhard Siegl, Olivia Janisch and Andreas Martinsich are delegated by the Works Council.
Elfriede Baumann was also nominated today to the Supervisory Board of ÖBB-Personenverkehr AG, Angela Köppl to the Supervisory Board of Rail Cargo Austria AG.
ÖBB
ÖBB has been shaping mobility in Austria for 100 years. As a comprehensive mobility and logistics service provider, ÖBB transported a total of 494 million passengers and over 78 million tonnes of freight to their destinations in an environmentally friendly manner in 2023. This is thanks to the electricity for trains and stations being generated entirely from renewable energy sources. With a punctuality rate of 95% in passenger transport, ÖBB is one of the most punctual railway operators in Europe. ÖBB invests more than 4.5 billion euros annually in railway infrastructure and its fleet as part of its drive to build a railway system fit for the future. Across the Group, over 43,000 bus and rail employees and about 2,000 apprentices ensure that around 1.4 million passengers reach their destination safely every day. ÖBB is the backbone of the Austrian public transport system and, as Austria's largest climate protection company in the mobility and logistics sector, gets people and freight to their destinations safely and in an environmentally friendly manner. The strategic lead company of the group is ÖBB-Holding AG.