The Narzissenbad in Bad Aussee is a modern thermal bath-like indoor swimming pool with a saltwater pool and a sauna area. It is owned by an Austrian company, but its previous Graz co-owners withdrew at the end of October and sold their shares.
Who is behind the narcissus bath?
Who is now the sole owner can be seen in the Cyprus Confidential Leak: it is a kind of foundation, the Rishy Trust in Cyprus. Its beneficiary is Alexander Petrov, who has Russian, Cypriot and British citizenship.
The confidential Cyprus leaks were researched by the international consortium of investigative journalists ICIJ; in Austria “Der Standard” and ORF are involved.
Alexander Petrov’s father was originally co-owner of the thermal baths. He is not considered a friend of Vladimir Putin’s policies. In the Russian Parliament, Sergey Petrov was one of four deputies who did not vote in favor of the annexation of Crimea in 2014. His opposition to Russian politics is also the reason why he now lives in Mödling – with dual Russian-Austrian citizenship, says Petrov: “That’s why I’m here. I was outraged and had to go into exile.”
Sergey Petrov got rich from his ROLF group, which imports Western cars to Russia – where his links to Austria come from. Petrov explains that he transferred part of his assets to the EU through a Cypriot trust, saying that one of the world’s leading tax consultants recommended this to him. According to his lawyer, in Russia there is always a risk that a competitor will improperly take control of the company – or that the state will take everything from opposition members. Companies in the EU state of Cyprus would therefore serve as security.
Possible expansion plans
Sergey Petrov explains his investments in the Aussee Golf Hotel Wasnerin and the Narzissenbad as follows: “Someone asked me to save the project. I said ok. I was there, it’s a beautiful environment. I think we need to develop it, but also protect it and not ruin the landscape.”
However, an additional hotel building and four apartment buildings will be built next to the daffodil pool because the pool itself is not profitable. There are fears that the pool will become full of hotel guests and there will be no space for locals and other tourists.
Public operation of the pool guaranteed
Ten years ago, the municipality of Bad Aussee invested almost five million euros in the construction of the daffodil pool. But she is only a silent partner and has little to say – with one restriction, says Mayor Franz Frosch: “We have a contract, registered in the land registry, that the public operation of the daffodil bath must be ensured.” wants to expand the daffodil shower to be able to fulfill this contract.