Esa Rautalinko appointed to Leipurin Board of Dire

ASPO Plc   STOCK EXCHANGE RELEASE     December 22, 2016, at 13:20 p.m. ESA RAUTALINKO APPOINTED TO LEIPURIN BOARD OF DIRECTORS Starting from January 1, 2017, Esa Rautalinko (M.Sc. (Econ.)), 53, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Cinia Group Ltd., has been appointed to the Board of Directors of Leipurin Plc, part of the Aspo Group. Previously, he has worked as the CEO of VAASAN Group Ltd and of Honkarakenne Plc and as a President and Country Manager, SVP Mobility Services at TeliaSonera Finland Plc. "I am very happy that Esa Rautalinko is starting as a new member of the Board of Directors of Leipurin Plc. He adds valuable experience in demanding business management and in the bakery industry to the Board of Directors. Businesses owned by the Aspo conglomerate are developed by the Board of Directors of each business. The objective is to lead and develop the businesses so that they could also operate as independent entities outside Aspo," says Aki Ojanen, CEO of the Aspo Group. Other members of the Board of Directors of Leipurin are Jukka Havia (M.Sc. (Econ.)), CFO of Tikkurila Plc; Kaisa Poutanen (D.Sc. (Tech.)), professor at VTT; Harri Sivula (M.Sc. (Admin.)), Chairman of the Board of Directors of Tokmanni Plc; and chairman Aki Ojanen, CEO of Aspo Plc. Matti Lappalainen (M.Sc. (Econ.)) has announced that he will step down from the Board of Directors of Leipurin. "I wish to thank Matti for his long-term hard work as a member of the Board of Directors of Leipurin." ASPO Plc Aki Ojanen CEO Further information: Aki Ojanen, CEO, Aspo Plc, tel. +358 9 521 4010, +358 400 106 592, aki.ojanen(a)aspo.com Distribution: Nasdaq Helsinki Key Media www.aspo.com Leipurin is a unique provider of solutions for bakery and confectionery products, the food industry and, the out of home (OOH) market. The solutions offered by Leipurin range, for example, from product development, recipes, raw materials, training and equipment all the way to the design of sales outlets. As part of its full-range services, Leipurin designs, delivers and maintains production lines for the baking industry, baking units and other machinery and equipment required in the food industry. Leipurin uses leading international manufacturers as its raw material and machinery supply partners. Leipurin operates in Finland, Russia, the Baltic countries, Poland, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Belarus. Aspo is a conglomerate that owns and develops business operations in Northern Europe and growth markets focusing on demanding b-to-b customers. Our strong company brands - ESL Shipping, Leipurin, Telko and Kauko - aim to be the market leaders in their sectors. They are responsible for their own operations, customer relationships and the development of these. Together they generate Aspo's goodwill. Aspo's Group structure and business operations are continually developed without any predefined schedules.