It’s about saving as many jobs as possible, paying off debts and creating a foundation for the future: bankrupt motorcycle manufacturer KTM is currently fighting on several fronts. Curious: In the last weeks of the previous year, the residents of Mattighofen caused a boom and caused the number of registrations to explode. Read what’s behind it here.
With debts of almost two billion euros, KTM went bankrupt at the end of November. Self-managed restructuring procedures were initiated via KTM AG, KTM Components GmbH and KTM Forschungs & Entwicklung GmbH. The next appointment in the course of the proceedings will take place on January 24 at the regional court in Ried im Innkreis: during the audit meeting, more precise facts about the amount of the debt will be presented, and this should also be explained further. it must be clear how the rescue can be successful and which investors will be on board.
When bankruptcy was declared, there were 130,000 motorcycles in stock
The fact is: production in Mattighofen is at a standstill until further notice – it is currently unclear whether it will restart at the beginning of March. The extreme number of motorcycles in stock is significant. When the bankruptcy was declared, there were said to be almost 130,000 bicycles for which buyers were sought. Production then continued until December 13, before the Christmas holidays started a week earlier than normal.
Interesting: While the management around Stefan Pierer, Gottfried Neumeister and Neo-Pierer-Industry board member Stephan Zöchling, together with the investment bank Citibank, are doing everything they can to restructure the company and arrange its financing, the group of companies provided a real motorcycle -Boom late last year.
4272 KTM motorcycles registered in December
In the middle of the crisis (and in winter), the number of registrations in Austria exploded in December. According to data from Statistics Austria, in December 2024, registrations were recorded for 4,272 KTM motorcycles, 2,300 for Gas Gas brand bicycles and 1,227 for Husqvarna. Even at the Italian luxury brand MV Agusta, in which KTM currently still has a majority, the number of registrations rose to 25 in the last month of the year. Interestingly, the majority of registrations were daily registrations, which apparently became a stopgap for residents from Innviertel.
Because: Since some of the motorcycles in stock do not meet the Euro 5+ emission and noise standard, which has been in force since January 1, 2025, without registration before the deadline there would have been a huge loss of value, since the motorcycles are in the European Union and in countries that implement the EU directives, they may no longer be approved for the first time since the beginning of this year. However, with short-term registration in 2024, the new standard will no longer be an obstacle. “If the vehicle is already registered, you can register it again after the deadline,” explains Martin Grasslober, transport economics expert at the ÖAMTC.
Nearly 11,000 more registered motorcycles than in 2023
Last year, a total of 46,508 motorcycles were registered in Austria – more than ever before in one year. In 2023 there were 35,561, the previous annual record.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
