Aspo - Company Announcement

ASPO GROUP'S LEIPURIN LTD GROWS IN LATVIA

ASPO Plc       STOCK EXCHANGE BULLETIN January 7, 2010 at 9:30 a.m.

Leipurin SIA, a subsidiary of Aspo Group's Leipurin Ltd, has acquired the entire
share capital of the Latvian company Raugs un citas preces SIA (RCP). RCP sells
and markets ingredients for the bakery and food industry in Latvia. The company
was established in 1995 and employs 30 people. Its annual turnover is about EUR
5 million. The transaction will have no significant impact on earnings for Aspo."Our Leipurin unit in Latvia was founded in 1999, after which we have achieved a
stable position as a partner for the country's bakery and food industry. The
transaction now concluded will give us a strong position in Latvia's bakery
industry and provides Leipurin with a strong foundation on which to develop its
customer service role and logistics throughout the entire Baltic region," says
Leipurin's Managing Director, Matti Väänänen."By acquiring RCP, we can combine our strong knowhow with the expertise of a
solid local company. Also in Latvia, we act as a partner for bakery customers in
both production and product development. We not only provide them with
ingredients, machinery and equipment but also, according to our overall concept,
develop the tastes and structures of customer products as well as competence
related to production and product developments. Our test bakery is a center for
product development and training", says Matti Väänänen."In line with its strategy, Leipurin has purposefully expanded its presence in
the Baltic Sea region and the Eastern markets. In 2009, we expanded our business
operations into Ukraine and strengthened our foothold in Russia by establishing
ourselves in Siberia. The Eastern markets offer us excellent opportunities to
develop our food processing operations, in particular," says Aspo's CEO, Aki
Ojanen.

ASPO Plc

Aki Ojanen
CEO

For further information, please contact:
Aki Ojanen, CEO of Aspo Plc, Leipurin Ltd's Chairman of the Board,
tel. +358 9 521 4010, +358 400 106 592
Matti Väänänen, Managing Director of Leipurin Ltd., tel. +358 9 521 2103

Leipurin: Leipurin Ltd, part of Aspo Group, serves the bakery and food industry
by supplying ingredients, production machinery and production lines, as well as
related expertise. The company has operations in the Baltic Sea Region and CIS
countries. Turnover in January-September 2009 totaled EUR 72 million.
www.leipurin.com <http://www.leipurin.com/>

Aspo is a conglomerate focused on sectors that require extensive b-to-b
specialist knowledge. Aspo owns and develops the leading businesses in its
sector, which include ESL Shipping, Leipurin, Telko and Kaukomarkkinat. The
Group's operations are focused on the Baltic Sea region.www.aspo.com<http://www.aspo.com/>



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