(Metso Corporation Company release on September 8, 2008 at 1.00 p.m.) Metso Group is appointing two new members to its Executive Team as of January 1, 2009. The new members are Kalle Reponen, Metso's Senior Vice President, Strategy and M&A, and Perttu Louhiluoto, who will start at Metso Group on October 1, 2008 as Senior Vice President, Operational Excellence. Metso will also form Metso Executive Forum to enforce strategy execution globally. The changes follow Metso's August 22 announcement of the new operating structure and more ambitious financial targets for its profitable growth strategy. "We have already established a four-year track record of profitable growth, and we aim to continue on the same path. The market demand in our businesses is estimated to continue favorable over the long-term, which supports our strategy. Challenging financial targets call for strong value capture throughout our organization. This will require efficient management of cross-business operational excellence initiatives and increasing our strategic agility. Kalle and Perttu will strengthen the capabilities of Metso Executive Team in these areas," says Jorma Eloranta, President and CEO of Metso. Eloranta notes that Metso still has a lot of development potential."Strategic agility calls for transparent and direct dialogue among the key business and regional leaders. Metso Executive Forum has been established to serve this purpose." Metso Executive Team as of January 1, 2009 The Metso Executive Team assists the President and CEO in the preparation of matters, such as business plans, strategy, policies and other matters of joint importance. As of January 1, 2009, Metso Executive Team will consist: * Jorma Eloranta, President and CEO, Chairman of the Executive Team * Olli Vaartimo, Executive Vice President and CFO, Vice Chairman of the Executive Team * Matti Kähkönen, President of Mining and Construction Technology * Pasi Laine, President of Energy and Environment Technology * Bertel Langenskiöld, President of Paper and Fiber Technology * Perttu Louhiluoto, Senior Vice President, Operational Excellence * Kalle Reponen, Senior Vice President, Strategy & MA Perttu Louhiluoto (M.Sc. in Economics, LLM) will join Metso from McKinsey & Company where he has worked since 1991, currently as Partner. He will have Group-wide responsibility for initiatives to enhance Metso's operational excellence with special focus on cross-business value capture. Kalle Reponen (M.Sc. in Economics) has worked for Metso since 2006 as Senior Vice President, Strategy and M&A. Metso Executive Forum as of January 1, 2009 The new Metso Executive Forum meets 2-4 times a year to discuss and implement Group-wide initiatives and themes, share know-how and best practices and create synergies between businesses. The overall purpose is to enforce strategy execution globally. The members are from Metso's main business lines and geographical regions. Jorma Eloranta will be Chairman of the Executive Forum and Olli Vaartimo Vice Chairman. In addition to the Metso Executive Team members, the members of the Metso Executive Forum are: * Andrew Benko (Mining business line) * João Ney Colagrossi (Construction business line) * Per-Åke Färnstrand (Fiber business line) * Heinz Gerdes (Recycling business line) * Ari Harmaala (China) * Hannu Mälkiä (Paper and Board business line) * Lennart Ohlsson (Power business line) * Sudhir Srivastava (India) Metso is a global engineering and technology corporation with 2007 net sales of over EUR 6 billion. Its over 27,000 employees in approximately 50 countries serve customers in the pulp and paper industry, rock and minerals processing, the energy industry and selected other industries. www.metso.com Further information for the press, please contact: Jorma Eloranta, President and CEO, Metso Corporation, tel. +358 204 84 3000 Olli Vaartimo, Executive Vice President and CFO, Metso Corporation, tel. +358 204 84 3010. Further information for investors, please contact: Johanna Sintonen, Vice President, Investor Relations, Metso Corporation, tel. +358 20 484 3253 It should be noted that certain statements herein which are not historical facts, including, without limitation, those regarding expectations for general economic development and the market situation, expectations for customer industry profitability and investment willingness, expectations for company growth, development and profitability and the realization of synergy benefits and cost savings, and statements preceded by "expects", "estimates","forecasts" or similar expressions, are forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current decisions and plans and currently known factors. They involve risks and uncertainties which may cause the actual results to materially differ from the results currently expected by the company. Such factors include, but are not limited to: (1) general economic conditions, including fluctuations in exchange rates and interest levels which influence the operating environment and profitability of customers and thereby the orders received by the company and their margins (2) the competitive situation, especially significant technological solutions developed by competitors (3) the company's own operating conditions, such as the success of production, product development and project management and their continuous development and improvement (4) the success of pending and future acquisitions and restructuring. Metso Corporation Olli Vaartimo Executive Vice President and CFO Kati Renvall Vice President, Corporate Communications Distribution: OMX Nordic Exchange in Helsinki Media www.metso.com
Metso Group appoints new Executive Team members and forms global Metso Executive Forum to accelerate strategy implementation
| Source: Metso Oyj