It was announced big – the Sim Campus at the former LKH Eisenerz in Upper Styria: But the simulation hospital, where emergency services were supposed to be prepared for emergencies, crises and disaster situations, was not in operation for long. The project fell asleep during the corona pandemic. In order to minimize the damage, the state of Styria tried to sell the Sim Campus, but the sales process was “defective,” according to a report from the state auditor’s office.
Sim Campus GmbH was founded in 2019 by the state of Styria to establish a competence center for disaster control and operational simulation in the structurally weak Eisenerz region. “Now – four years later – the project is history again,” said the State Audit Office (LRH) on Wednesday. Insolvency proceedings were opened last year regarding the GmbH, which has now been sold to a new owner for the second time. In addition, legal proceedings are ongoing because the state filed a lawsuit against the first buyer last year for payment of the purchase price of 650,000 euros. The money never flowed. There was no upswing. The original idea for establishing the Sim Campus sounded promising, said the State Audit Office with Director Heinz Drobesch. New life was supposed to be breathed into the disused state hospital, but things turned out differently: During the pandemic, the Sim Campus was used as a care facility for deportees suffering from Corona. However, there was no upswing as a training center after that. No economic benefit. The state planned subsidies to cover costs in the early years because there was no intention to make a profit. 2.62 million euros went into establishing the Sim Campus, which was a matter close to the heart of the then SPÖ leader and deputy governor Michael Schickhofer. Three consulting companies were commissioned to create concepts for the campus. However, none of them calculated any economic benefit for the region or a cost-benefit analysis for the participation in the GmbH, criticizes the Court of Auditors. Liquidation of the company was abandoned at short notice because of an interested buyer. However, the auditors described the following sales process as “defective”: “There was neither an appropriate assessment of the buyer’s economic performance nor was there a requirement to secure the purchase price.” The 650,000 euros were therefore not paid and a lawsuit was filed. “A pile of shambles.” failed project “In the end it went bankrupt and now the complex has been sold again. The Greens saw their criticism of the past few years confirmed: “The audit report presents the black-red state government with the shambles of a failed project,” said control spokesman Lambert Schönleitner on Wednesday. The project was a “total failure” from the start and was the “result of an incredibly unprofessional approach on the part of the state government, the like of which has hardly been seen twice.” Schönleitner continued: “The state government ignored and bypassed the state parliament by passing the resolutions of the state parliament was illegally obtained only afterwards. The state parliament was thus completely deceived. There was insufficient security. The state government’s commercial due diligence obligation was not met at any time during the legal transaction. The state’s participation guidelines were simply ignored and there was no discernible strategy from the state government. The original project goals were negligently ignored.”
source site-12