SPCI´99: Adara new name for the merged company of Ahlstrom/Kvaerner
During a press conference at the fair SPCI´99 in Stockholm today officials from Ahlström Machinery and Kvaerner Pulp & Paper gave an update on the status of their proposed merger. Ahlstrom/Kvaerner also unveiled the name for the new company being formed by the merger. The new name for the merged company will be Adara Corporation. The name Adara is supposed to describe the vision of the company. Adara is a star in the consellation Canis Major, 15,000 times more luminous than the sun. In Sansskrit, Adara means "care" and "respect". The main reason for the merger is the total worldwide decline in demand for new equipment in the pulp and paper industry and the consequent significant losses incurred by all suppliers, and in particular by the parties. In combining the Pulping business, the parties anticipate synergies of approximately 59 million euro per annum. Adara also estimates costsavings of 500 miljons norwegian kronor out of the merger.- We don not want to imply that the merger has been cleared by the competition authorities and that we are open for business, said Tuomo Rönkko, who will be President and CEO of the new company. But we want to take advantage of the opportunity SPCI presents to introduce our vision to the industry. Tuomo Rönkko, 44, is currently President and CEO of Ahlström Machinery Corporation, a position he has held since 1996. His office is in the companys headquarters in Helsinki, Finland. Tuomo has over 18 years experience in serving the pulp and paper industry. Prior to joining Ahlstrom, he was Manager of Production Planning for the Finnish company Valco. - We hope that the Commission in Brussels will clear the transaction. The decision from the European Commission is expected no later than September 10th this year, said Rönkko.The merger agreement between Ahlstrom and Kvaerner was signed on March 19,1999. On March 26th, the Commission´s Merger Task Force (MTF) was formally notified of the deal. The European Commission notified on May 4th its intention to let MTF open an in-depth inquiry into the merger. Adara will request an Oral Hearing for July. The primary business activities for Adara will be expert services and modernizations form pulp and paper mills. The company will also engineer systems for pulping and recovery, bleaching and pulping chemicals preparation, stock preparation and recycled fiber processing. - We decided to form a company with its own identity, independent of Kvaerner and Ahlstrom, said Roland Martin-Löf, who will be Chairman of the Board of Adara. We have a new service-oriented vision for Adara which is in line with customer needs and also could be attractive to the financial community as we expand the ownership through further investors in the future, said Martin-Löf.Roland Martin-Löf, 57, is currently Executive Vice President of Kvaerner and in charge of Pulp & Paper, a position he has held since 1994. His office is based at the International Headquarters in London. He has over 30 years experience in serving the pulp and paper industry. Prior to joining Kvaerner he was Managing Director of MoDo Paper AB.(Papernews, SPCI´99-news) (BMH)