Investor News

A principle agreement has been reached between the Stork Pension Fund, the Dutch company Stork BV and a number of companies that were formerly part of the Stork group on the future arrangement of the pensions currently managed by the Fund. Marel is party to the agreement due to its acquisition of Stork Food Systems.

A key part of the principal agreement is a new execution agreement on pension arrangements, which safeguards employees‘ interests to the extent possible and which is beneficial to Marel as it reduces open-ended financial exposure to pension obligations.

Another central element of the agreement is the intended transfer of the pension arrangements from the Stork Pension Fund to the industry-wide pension fund Metal-Electro (PME) in the Netherlands with the aim of achieving greater economies of scale and risk diversification. Agreement has been reached with the social partners on this roadmap and discussions between PME and the Stork Pension Fund are underway.

The principle agreement is subject to the final approval of the Dutch Central Bank and the consent of the participation council of the Stork Pension Fund. The estimated total cost due to the principle agreement for Marel is EUR 10 million, which is expected to be accounted  as a one-time cost in Q2 2011, payable over a period of 4 years.

Theo Hoen, CEO of Marel:
“This agreement is a very positive outcome for all stakeholders – the employees, pensioners and companies concerned. It establishes a stable and secure foundation for the pension plans for the long-term future and eliminates the open-ended financial exposures associated with the previous arrangement. All the parties have demonstrated commitment and responsibility in arriving at this mutually beneficial conclusion.”

The agreement is being announced in the Netherlands this morning. A press release from Stork Pension Fund is available at the website of NASDAQ OMX Iceland.
 

NASDAQ OMX Iceland announcement on Stork´s Pension Fund