Verbundplan and Jaakko Pöyry Group Are Bundling Their Powers

The international engineering group Jaakko Pöyry Group, headquartered in Finland, and VERBUND, Austria’s leading electricity company, signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the sale of 74.9 % of the Verbundplan shares to the Jaakko Pöyry Group. The transaction is to be completed in the first quarter of 2004. The major steps for completing the transaction will be worked out in the next few months.

With 4,800 employees in 35 countries the Jaakko Pöyry Group generates an annual turnover of 407 million EUR (2002), focusing on three areas: forestry, energy, and infrastructure & environment. The group aims at geographical expansion towards Central and Southeast Europe, where Verbundplan has already been active in several countries. By holding an interest in Verbundplan the Jaakko Pöyry Group plans to extend its competence especially to the areas hydropower, energy transmission line networks, and tunnelling.

The Verbundplan Group is Austria’s leading engineering company, focusing on energy (50 % of the revenue), traffic and infrastructure systems (20 %), and water and environmental technology (30%). The group has around 300 employees and expects sales amounting to 37 million EUR for the year 2003.

By taking in one of the world’s biggest companies in the engineering business as majority shareholder the leading Austrian engineering company is to be upgraded and safeguarded in the long run. Its integration into a globally active group opens up new possibilities for Verbundplan to improve the marketing of its comprehensive know-how on a global basis and successfully develop its international business.