Neste Oil Corporation's Board of Directors has appointed Matti
Lievonen (age 49) as the company's new President & CEO. He will take
over on 1 December 2008. Neste Oil's current President & CEO, Risto
Rinne (58), will leave his position for health reasons and retire.
Matti Lievonen comes to Neste Oil from UPM-Kymmene Corporation, where
he has been President of the Fine and Speciality Papers Division
since 2004. Lievonen has served in a number of senior positions at
UPM since joining the company 1986, and was with ABB earlier."Matti Lievonen's wide-ranging business experience, process industry
knowledge, and ability to deal with challenging change management
issues make him an excellent choice for leading Neste Oil as it
continues to move ahead with its growth strategy," according to the
Chairman of Neste Oil's Board of Directors, Timo Peltola. "His strong
international background and experience with major capital investment
projects will stand him in good stead to succeed as President & CEO
at Neste Oil."
President & CEO Risto Rinne will retire on 1 October 2008. Deputy CEO
Jarmo Honkamaa will handle the duties of President & CEO until Matti
Lievonen takes over."Risto Rinne has skillfully led Neste Oil as a standalone listed
company for a number of years. Under his leadership, the company has
launched and completed some of the largest capital projects in its
history, and has moved a considerable way to achieving its goal of
become the world's leading supplier of renewable diesel," continues
Timo Peltola. "I would like to warmly thank Risto Rinne for the very
valuable contribution that he has made to building Neste Oil's
position as an international pioneer in its field over the more than
30 years that he has been with the company."
Neste Oil Corporation
Timo Peltola
Chairman of the Board
Attachment: Curriculum Vitae
Further information:
Timo Peltola, Chairman of Neste Oil Corporation's Board of Directors,
via the President & CEO's Assistant, Suvi Åkerblom, on +358 (0)10 458
4578.
Press conference
Neste Oil will hold a press conference on the appointment for the
media and analysts today at 11.00 CET at Restaurant Bank (Meeting
Rooms 12-13), Unioninkatu 20, Helsinki.
Neste Oil in brief
Neste Oil Corporation is a refining and marketing company focused on
advanced, clean traffic fuels, with a strategy that prioritizes
growing its refining and premium-quality renewable diesel businesses.
Neste Oil's refineries are located at Porvoo and Naantali in Finland,
and have a total refining capacity of approx. 260,000 bbl/d. The
company recorded sales of EUR 12.1 billion in 2007 and employs around
5,100 people. The company's shares are listed on the OMX Nordic
Exchange in Helsinki. For further information, see www.nesteoil.com.
