Metso’s mining, construction, automation and oil and gas businesses have been separated from its pulp, paper and power business to form a ‘new’ Metso that aims to deliver stronger growth and improved profitability. Peter Mercer speaks to Metso’s President and CEO, Matti Kahkonen.
SHARPENING THE FOCUS AT
the end of 2013, Finland’s Metso Corporation, the global supplier of technology and services to the mining, construction, pulp and paper, power and oil and gas industries, completed a demerger into two separate companies. Metso’s pulp, paper and power businesses have been transferred to a new company, Valmet, while the mining, construction, automation and oil and gas businesses remain part of Metso. 116 Industry Europe
Valmet, of course, is not at all a new name in Finnish industry. In fact, Metso itself was created in 1999 through the merger of Valmet, at that time one of the world’s most important paper and board machine manufacturers, and Rauma whose operations were focused on fibre technology, rock crushing and flow control solutions. So if it made sense to merge the two businesses in 1999, why has Metso’s board decided that they would now be better able to
profit from growth opportunities as separate companies? Matti Kahkonen, Metso’s President and CEO, says “Fifteen years ago, putting Rauma and Valmet together created a strong, broadly based company that could effectively compete on the global market but in the years since then both sides of the business have grown through acquisitions and investment and we are confident that they are both now large enough and competitive enough to succeed as separate players in the global market.
