On 23 January 2002 the executive bodies of Doppelmayr Holding AG and Garaventa Holding AG signed the final merger agreement.

Following the signing of the letter of intent on 8 August, 2001, the companies proceeded to clarify anti-trust matters and perform an internal due diligence program, thus completing all formalities required to finalise the merger of the two leading ropeway manufacturers.

The companies will combine their assets in the jointly owned holding company Ropetrans AG. The majority shareholder of the new group, which will be headquartered in Goldau, Switzerland, is Doppelmayr Holding AG, of Wolfurt, Austria.