ASPO Plc   STOCK EXCHANGE RELEASE     June 25, 2012 at 17:35

ESL Shipping Ltd, part of Aspo Group, has sold its oldest ship, m/s Hesperia, for approx. EUR 3.3 million. The transaction was concluded today, June 25, 2012. A sales gain of approx. EUR 2.4 million will be recorded in the profit for the second quarter. The sale of m/s Hesperia, built in 1991, is part of the fleet renewal in ESL Shipping's strategy. ESL Shipping took delivery of two new 1A ice-strengthened Supramax vessels in January and May 2012.

"The environmental directives to be adopted in 2015 affect our fleet renewal plans. We decided to give up our oldest vessel, since Hesperia's use in the Baltic Sea area would have required substantial environmental investments. We understand the ice-strengthened vessel will operate in the Russian Far East," says Aki Ojanen, CEO of Aspo.

All ships of ESL Shipping sail under the Finnish flag. After this transaction, the company's fleet consists of 17 vessels, 13 of which it owns in full. Two are time-chartered, one is bareboat chartered and one is partially owned. The total dead weight capacity of the vessels is approximately 310,000 tons.

ESL Shipping transports dry bulk materials, mainly in the Baltic Sea region; in 2011, approximately 13.3 million tons. The cargo mainly consists of ore, coal and limestone. The steel industry's share of transports was 60 percent, and the energy industry represented 30 percent.

ASPO Plc

Aki Ojanen
CEO

For further information, please contact:
Aki Ojanen, CEO Aspo Plc, +358 9 5211, +358 400 106 592, aki.ojanen (a)aspo.com, www.aspo.com
Markus Karjalainen, President ESL Shipping Ltd, +358 400 888 020 markus.karjalainen (a)eslshipping.com, www.eslshipping.com

Aspo is a conglomerate that owns and develops business operations in the Baltic Sea region focusing on demanding B-to-B customers. Our strong company brands - ESL Shipping, Leipurin, Telko and Kaukomarkkinat - aim to be the market leaders in their sectors. They are responsible for their own operations, customer relationships and the development of these. Together they generate Aspo's goodwill. Aspo's Group structure and business operations are continually developed without any predefined schedules.  

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