Ahlstrom-Munksjö’s (Sweden) current President and CEO Jan Åström will retire from the position on June 30, 2018, at the latest. He has been president and CEO of the company since its creation through the merger of Ahlstrom Corp. and Munksjö Oyj on April 1, 2017, and before that was president and CEO of Munksjö since 2008.

"The Ahlstrom-Munksjö Board of Directors is very pleased with how the integration following the merger is progressing. As previously communicated, we expect to deliver above the original synergy plan and the synergy benefits are already clearly visible in our results. The board feels that we are now in a natural and strong position to move forward. With the appointment of Hans Sohlström as the new CEO in Ahlstrom-Munksjö, we expect him to take us to the next level by continuing to execute on our long-term financial targets and our strategic growth plan. We truly believe that Hans, through his skills, experience, and passion, will be a driving force in creating further value to all of our stakeholders," said Vice Chair Peter Seligson.

"Jan Åström has done an excellent job in leading the integration of the merged company, and before that he very successfully transformed the operations at Munksjö. On behalf of the board and the company, I would like to offer our warmest thanks to Jan for his commitment and hard work for Ahlstrom-Munksjö and its predecessor Munksjö," Seligson concluded.

"The merger of Ahlstrom and Munksjö and the subsequent integration of the two companies have been among the most interesting, yet challenging tasks of my professional career. I have truly enjoyed every minute of it. I will give my full attention and commitment to leading this company until the succession has been completed in a successful way," Åström said.  

Sohlström, M.Sc (Tech.) and M.Sc. (Econ.), has been the president and CEO of Ahlström Capital since early 2016. Before that, he worked for 3.5 years as the president and CEO of Rettig Group and 24 years in various leadership positions at UPM-Kymmene Corp., of which eight years were as a member of the Group Executive Team. At UPM, Sohlström gained experience from leading corporate and new business development, sales and marketing, as well as operations as a mill director.

"I know Ahlstrom-Munksjö very well and I’m passionate about its business and mission to create innovative and sustainable fiber-based solutions. I am very excited to take this position and about the company’s future value creation potential," Sohlström noted.

Sohlström will continue as chairman of the board until the end of the annual general meeting in 2018, but refrain from participating in the work of the shareholders’ nomination board. The board of directors has today resolved to change the composition of the human resources committee and elected Peter Seligson as new member and Hannele Jakosuo-Jansson as chair of the Human Resources Committee instead of Hans Sohlström. The members of the Human Resources Committee are Hannele Jakosuo-Jansson (chair), Peter Seligson, and Johannes Gullichsen. All of the members of the Human Resources Committee are considered independent of the company and its significant shareholders."

Sohlström will be based at the company’s head office in Stockholm, Sweden, with a working desk also at the Helsinki, Finland, office.