Finnish State Pulls Funds From Altia

Hannu Tuominen, the present CEO of Altia, has called for investors to pour money into the company after it was announced the the Finnish government intends to sell the state-owned company. He stated that the Finnish state "has taken a stance not to add additional funds."   Tuominen was ambivalent, however, when asked whether Altia would welcome the firm passing into private control: "It's too early to say. Let's see what happens. Our task is to make sure that the company operates and is as active as possible, and that is what we are trying to ensure."   Finland's coalition government yesterday announced its intention to sell off Altia to finance spending and reduce borrowing. Reuters said that the action is part of a government plan to sell €1.9 billion worth of its holdings over two years.   Tuominen, who is in control of Altia until the incoming CEO, Pekka Tennilä, takes over next month, confirmed that negotiations surrounding Altia's sale have been ongoing for "quite some time" but resolved that today's move will have no effect on the company's short-term operations   He said "We haven't been given a schedule or any information about any ongoing process. The next step is that the government takes it up with the parliament."   Altia's wine and spirits brands include Blossa, Chill Out, Explorer, Grönstedts, Jaloviina, Koskenkorva, O.P. Anderson, Renault, Xanté and Skåne Akvavit.    © 2014 - European Supermarket Magazine by Peter Donnelly To sign up to ESM’s weekly e-zine newsletter, send an email with the subject: ‘Subscribe ESM news’ to [email protected]