Valmet’s Remuneration Principles
Well-functioning and competitive remuneration is an essential tool for engaging competent members at the Board level, as executives and as experts at all levels of the organization. Remuneration must be in proportion to the long-term value creation and the achievement of the strategic objectives of the Company.
Remuneration at all levels of the organization is built on the following principles
Driving high performance
The objective of remuneration at Valmet is to encourage employees as individuals and as team members to achieve the set financial and operational targets and to strive for excellent performance. A key element of Valmet’s remuneration is the implementation of a pay-for-performance culture. All employees are eligible for a performance reward or bonus, linking rewarding to performance and strengthening individual and team accountability.
For key personnel and top management, including the President and CEO, a notable part of remuneration comes from variable pay, i.e., short-term and long-term incentives, to ensure that remuneration is aligned with the Company’s financial performance and linked to the successful implementation of the business strategy. Board member compensation is set at the Annual General Meeting
Competitive renumeration to retain talent with the best fit
In determining appropriate remuneration levels, Valmet applies a benchmark approach, ensuring that remuneration is aligned with internal and external references and observing remuneration levels for similar positions among peer companies in the geographical area. Valmet’s approach is not to be the market leader in pay but to offer competitive remuneration to retain talent with the best fit. Valmet also utilizes a benchmark approach when determining remuneration levels for the President and CEO and the Board of Directors.
Fairness and sustainability
Valmet aims to ensure equal treatment and fair remuneration of employees at all levels of the organization by linking remuneration to role, the local salary market, and individual and/or team performance. Valmet’s remuneration approval principles are designed to ensure that changes in pay are always subject to grandparent approval. This supports the equality and impartiality of decisions related to pay at all levels of the organization.
Valmet’s variable pay schemes support sustainable business by linking selected sustainability topics such as health and safety and sustainable supply chain to remuneration. Sustainability is important to Valmet’s overall financial success, as well as share price development, and thus affects the total remuneration of Board members, as well as the President and CEO.
Decision-making process
All remuneration-related decisions require grandparent approval. In other words, the remuneration of an employee must always be approved by the manager’s manager. The decision-making process for the remuneration of the Board of Directors and the President and CEO is summarized in the chart below.
On this image
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1 People and Remuneration Committee
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2 Board of Directors
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3 General meeting
People and Remuneration Committee
- Makes the proposals to the Board of Directors regarding the renumeration paid to the President and CEO
Board of Directors
- Decides on the renumeration paid to the President and CEO in accordance with the renumeration policy
- Decides on short-term and long-term incentive plans
- Decides based on the General Meeting's authorization on the repurchase of Company shares to be used in an incentive scheme
General meeting
- Decides on the renumeration paid to the Board of Directors
- Reviews the renumeration policy applicable to the renumeration of the President and CEO
- Authorizes the Board of Directors to decide on the repurchase of Company shares to be used in an incentive scheme
Nomination Board
- Proposes renumeration for the Board of Directors
Remuneration of the President and CEO
The Board of Directors decides on the remuneration, benefits and other terms of employment of the President and CEO based on the preparatory work by the People and Remuneration Committee and in accordance with the guidelines set forth in the Remuneration Policy presented to the General Meeting. External market data is used to support the process according to our remuneration principles. The Board determines the total remuneration elements of the President and CEO based on market benchmarking and other relevant information available.
The remuneration of the President and CEO is comprised of the total salary (monthly base salary and customary fringe benefits, such as a car and a mobile phone, in accordance with local legislation and market practice), short- and long-term incentives, pension benefits and customary insurances. The fixed annual base salary of the President and CEO in 2026 is EUR 892,500. The maximum relative proportion of the variable pay elements of the President and CEO is 2–3 times the fixed salary.
Long-term incentive plan, Performance Share Plan
In December 2025, the Board of Directors of Valmet Oyj approved a new long-term share-based incentive plan, the Performance Share Plan of the group, including the President and CEO. The plan consists of one performance period, covering the financial years 2026-2028.
The rewards will be paid partly in Valmet shares and partly in cash to cover taxes and statutory social security contributions arising from the reward. As a rule, no reward will be paid if the key employee’s employment or director contract terminates before the reward payment.
Shares in the long-term incentive plan PSP (Performance Share Plan) 2026-2028 have been allocated to Thomas Hinnerskov in March 2026, with rewards from these plans will be paid to plan participants in spring 2029.
* Valmet's President and CEO, Thomas Hinnerskov, has an allocation of 61,037 shares in restricted share pool. A precondition for the payment of the share reward based on the restricted pool is that the employment relationship of Thomas Hinnerskov with Valmet continues until the payment date of the reward, which is in March 2027.
Performance share plan
|
Performance period |
2024 |
2024–2026 |
2025–2027 |
2026–2028 |
|
Incentive based on |
Comparable EBITA margin and orders received growth (%) of the stable business (Services and Automation segments) |
Development of a valuation multiple of Valmet’s share in comparison to peer group |
Comparable EBITA, organic orders received growth (%) of the stable business and ESG Index |
Absolute Total Shareholder Rturn, Organic net sales growth, and Emission reduction in own operations |
|
Reward payment |
Deferred payment in spring 2027 |
In spring 2027 |
In Spring 2028 |
In Spring 2029 |
|
Total number of shares |
18,678 | 6,226 | 73.869 | 75,588 |
|
Restriction period |
None |
None |
None |
None |
The Performance Share Plan includes an obligation for the members of Valmet's Executive Team to own and hold an amount of Company shares equaling their gross annual base salary (100 percent ownership obligation). Management shareholding can be found here.
Other remuneration elements
Additional pension benefit in the form of a defined contribution pension plan, 20% of base salary.
Remuneration of the Executive Leadership Team
The Board’s People and Remuneration Committee decides on the compensation and benefits of the other Executive Leadership Team members than President and CEO based on the President and CEO’s proposal and general principles approved by the Board.
The remuneration of the Executive Leadership Team members comprises a fixed base salary (including monthly salary and taxable benefits, such as a car and a mobile phone according to local market practice), short-term and long-term incentives. In addition they may belong to a supplementary pension plan.
Long-term incentive plan, Performance Share Plan
In December 2025, the Board of Directors of Valmet Oyj approved a new long-term share-based incentive plan, the Performance Share Plan, of the group, including members of the Executive Leadership Team. The plan consists of one performance period, covering the financial years 2026-2028.
The rewards will be paid partly in Valmet shares and partly in cash to cover taxes and statutory social security contributions arising from the reward. As a rule, no reward will be paid if the key employee’s employment or director contract terminates before the reward payment.
PERFORMANCE SHARE PLAN
|
Performance period |
2023 | 2023—2025 | 2024 | 2024–2026 | 2025–2027 | 2026–2028 |
|
Incentive based on |
Comparable EBITA as a percentage of net sales, and orders received growth (%) in the stable business (Services and Automation segments) | Development of a valuation multiple of Valmet's share in compariston to peer group | Comparable EBITA margin and orders received growth (%) of the stable business (Biomaterial services and Process Performance Solutions) | Development of a valuation multiple of Valmet's share in comparison to peer group | Comparable EBITA, organice orders received growth (%) of the stable business and ESG Index | Absolute Total Shareholder Return, Organic net sales growth and emission reduction in own operations |
|
Reward payment |
In Spring 2024 | In Spring 2026 | Deferred payment in spring 2027 | In spring 2027 | In spring 2028 | In spring 2029 |
|
Total gross number of shares (Executive Leadership Team excl. President and CEO) |
71,413 | 23,807 | 119,288 | 39,765 | 157,844 | 213,941 |
|
Restriction period |
Two years | None | None | None | None | None |
The Performance Share Plan includes an obligation for the members of Valmet's Executive Leadership Team to own and hold an amount of Company shares equaling their gross annual base salary (100 percent ownership obligation). Management shareholding can be found here.
OTHER REMUNERATION ELEMENTS
Notice period for the Executive Team members is six months for both parties. If the company terminates the agreement, there is an additional severance pay equaling six times the last total monthly salary.
Additional pension benefit in the form of a defined contribution pension plan (for those belonging to the plan) is 15-20% of the annual base salary depending on role.
REMUNERATION IN 2025
|
EUR Thousands |
Fixed Annual Salary (incl. taxable benefits) |
Bonus payment in 2025 |
Share-based incentive payment |
Supplementary pension |
Total compensation |
|
Executive Team, |
3,218 |
836 |
408 |
453 |
4,915 |
Remuneration of the Board of Directors
The General Meeting decides on the remuneration of the members of the Board of Directors and the Board’s Committees for one term of office at a time. The preparation of the election and remuneration of the members of the Board of Directors is delegated to Valmet’s Nomination Board which submits its proposals to the Board of Directors. In the preparatory work the Nomination Board may also use external experts to determine the level of remuneration. In accordance with its charter, the Nomination Board presents its proposals and reports on its activities to the General Meeting. More detailed information describing the procedures used for the preparatory work relating to the remuneration is available here.
Remuneration of the members of the Board of Directors consists of an annual fee and a fee per meeting. Furthermore, an additional annual fee is paid to the members of the Board’s committees. In addition, Board member’s travel expenses and daily allowances are compensated in accordance with Valmet’s travel expense policy. The personnel representative of the Board of Directors is entitled to a meeting fee for those meetings they have been invited to attend and have attended.
The following annual remuneration for the Board has been approved until Valmet’s Annual General Meeting 2026:
- Chairman of the Board EUR 155,000
- Vice Chairman EUR 85,500
- the other members of the Board EUR 68,000
Furthermore, the Annual General Meeting 2025 decided the following base fees for committee work:
- EUR 16,700 for the Chairman of the Audit Committee
- EUR 7,300 for each member of the Audit Committee
- EUR 8,500 for the Chairman of the Remuneration and HR Committee
- EUR 4,200 for each member of the Remuneration and HR Committee
In addition, for each meeting of the Board of Directors or the committees of the Board of Directors, following meeting fees will be paid for the meetings attended:
- EUR 750 to the members of the Board who reside in the Nordic countries
- EUR 1,500 to the members of the Board who reside elsewhere in Europe
- EUR 3,000 to the members of the Board who reside outside of Europe
For meetings in which a Board member participates via remote connection, including the meetings of the committees of the Board of Directors, a meeting fee of EUR 750 shall be paid to Board members. Furthermore, a meeting fee of EUR 1,500 shall be paid to Board members for a Board travel meeting.
The Annual General Meeting resolved that, as a condition for the annual remuneration, the members of the Board of Directors are obliged, directly based on the Annual General Meeting’s resolution, to use 40 percent of the fixed annual remuneration for purchasing Valmet shares at a price formed on a regulated market on the official list of Nasdaq Helsinki Ltd stock exchange, and that the purchase will be carried out within two weeks from the publication of the Interim Review for the period January 1 to March 31, 2025.