Ahlstrom's Nomination Board makes proposals to the Annual General Meeting for composition and remuneration of the Board of Directors
Ahlstrom Corporation STOCK EXCHANGE RELEASE January 24, 2014 at 8.30
Ahlstrom's Shareholders' Nomination Board has made its proposal on the composition and remuneration of the Board of Directors of the company.
Number of Board Members
The Nomination Board proposes that the number of Board members be eight, which requires an amendment to the Company's Articles of Association. The Board members are elected for the period ending at the close of the next Annual General Meeting.
Composition of the Board of Directors
The Nomination Board proposes that Robin Ahlström, Lori J. Cross, Esa Ikäheimonen, Pertti Korhonen, Daniel Meyer and Anders Moberg be re-elected. Peter Seligson, who has been a member of the Board of Directors of Ahlstrom Corporation since 1999, has informed that he is no longer available for re-election. Therefore it is proposed that Markus Rauramo, (b. 1968) and Panu Routila (b. 1964) be elected as new members of the Board.
Markus Rauramo, M.Sc.(Econ.and Pol.Hist.), is the Chief Financial Officer and member of the Management team of Fortum Corporation since 2012. He has worked in several senior positions at Stora Enso Oyj, latest as CFO and member of the Group Executive Team during 2008-2012. He is a member of the Board of Wärtsilä Corporation, Teollisuuden Voima Oyj and Oy Proselectum AB, and member of the Supervisory Board of Kemijoki Oy.
Panu Routila, M.Sc. (Econ), is the President and CEO of Ahlström Capital Oy. He has previously held various senior executive positions, most recently as CEO of Alteams Oy, part of Kuusakoski Group Ltd, in 2002-2007, and prior to that in Outokumpu and Partek. He is Chairman of the Board at Vacon Plc, Enics AG, AC Cleantech Management Oy and a board member at ÅR Packaging Group AB and Ripasso Energy AB.
All nominees are considered independent of the Company and of the significant shareholders of the Company, except for Robin Ahlström who is not independent of the Company's significant shareholder Antti Ahlström Perilliset Oy, where he is a Board Member. Panu Routila, President and CEO of Ahlström Capital Oy, is considered independent of the Company and of the significant shareholders of the Company.
Ahlstrom Capital Oy will become a significant shareholder of Ahlstrom Corporation following the execution of the demerger of Antti Ahlström Perilliset Oy, announced on June 27, 2013 by Ahlstrom. In conjunction with this, Robin Ahlström will become independent of a significant shareholder of the Company while Panu Routila will not be independent of the Company's significant shareholder.
The CVs of the proposed Board members are available on the website of the company at www.ahlstrom.com.
Board Remuneration
The Nomination Board proposes that the remuneration of the Board members remains unchanged, except that the annual remuneration of the Chairman of the Audit Committee will be increased to correspond to the remuneration of the Vice Chairman. The remunerations are as follows:
Chairman EUR 84,000 per year
Vice Chairman EUR 63,000 per year
Chairman of the Audit Committee EUR 63,000 per year
Members EUR 42,000 per year
In addition, the proposed remuneration for attendance at Board meetings is EUR 1,500 per meeting for Board members residing outside Finland. As regards the permanent Board committees and the Nomination Board, the proposed remuneration for attendance at committee and the Nomination Board meetings is EUR 1,500 per meeting. Travel expenses are reimbursed in accordance with the Company's travel policy.
The Nomination Board comprises representatives of the three largest shareholders of Ahlstrom as of May 31, 2013 and in addition, the Chairman of the company's Board of Directors and a person nominated by the Board of Directors.
Nomination Board
Pertti Korhonen (Chairman), Alexander Ehrnrooth (Vimpu Intressenter Ab), Thomas Ahlström (Antti Ahlström Perilliset Oy), Risto Murto (Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Company) and Anders Moberg (member of Ahlstrom's Board).
For more information, please contact:
Liisa Nyyssönen
Vice President, Communications
Tel. +358 10 888 4757
Ahlstrom in brief
Ahlstrom is a high performance fiber-based materials company, partnering with leading businesses around the world to help them stay ahead. Our products are used in a large variety of everyday applications, such as filters, medical gowns and drapes, diagnostics, wallcoverings, flooring and food packaging. We have a leading market position in the businesses in which we operate. In 2012, Ahlstrom's net sales from the continuing operations (excluding Label and Processing business) amounted to EUR 1 billion. Our 3,800 employees serve customers in 24 countries. Ahlstrom's share is quoted on the NASDAQ OMX Helsinki. More information available at www.ahlstrom.com.