Ahlstrom - Company Announcement

Ahlstrom's acquisition of specialty paper company Friend Group confirmed

Ahlstrom Corporation STOCK EXCHANGE RELEASE 13.02.2008

Ahlstrom, a global leader in high performance fiber-based materials,
today announced the completion of the acquisition of Friend Group
Inc., which consists of West Carrollton Parchment Company and West
Carrollton Converting Company. The Group is a producer of vegetable
parchment and has parchmentizing and converting operations located in
West Carrollton, Ohio, the USA.

The parties have agreed not to disclose the acquisition price. Friend
Group employs 162 people and has two sites in West Carrollton serving
mainly the food packaging market in the USA. Net sales of the
acquired entity in 2007 were USD 47 million.

The new entity is consolidated in Ahlstrom's group financials as of
February 1, 2008.


For further information, please contact:

Jukka Moisio, President & CEO, Ahlstrom Corporation, tel. +358 (0)10
888 4700
Patrick Jeambar, Senior Vice President, Technical Papers, tel. + 33 4
7645 3507

Distribution:
OMX Nordic Exchange Helsinki
Main media
www.ahlstrom.com

Ahlstrom in brief

Ahlstrom is a global leader in the development, manufacture and
marketing of high performance fiber-based materials. Nonwovens and
specialty papers, made by Ahlstrom, are used in a large variety of
everyday products, such as filters, wipes, flooring, labels, and
tapes. Based upon its unique fiber expertise and innovative approach,
the company has a strong market position in several business areas in
which it operates. Ahlstrom's 6,500 employees serve customers via
sales offices and production facilities in more than 20 countries on
six continents. In 2007, Ahlstrom's net sales amounted to EUR 1.8
billion. Ahlstrom's share is listed on the OMX Nordic Exchange
Helsinki. The company website is www.ahlstrom.com.