PRESS RELEASE
18 February 2025, Copenhagen, Denmark
Leading mining technology and service supplier FLSmidth announces the appointment of two new leaders to Group Executive Management. Julian Soles will join FLSmidth on 1 May 2025 as President, Mining Products Business Line and Toni Laaksonen will join the company in the coming months as President, Mining Service Business Line.
Toni Laaksonen joins FLSmidth from Glaston Corporation, a technology, solutions and service provider for the glass processing industry where he is President and CEO. Under his leadership, the company has developed its service offerings and global customer support as well as increased service sales by restructuring the global sales and service organisation. Before joining Glaston, he held several business, sales and service leadership positions with Metso, Outotec, ABB and Posti Group. In these roles he built a track record of profitability improvement and sales growth through organic business development and acquisitions. Laaksonen holds a Master of Science degree in technology from Tampere University of Technology and a Bachelor of Science degree in economics from the University of Vaasa.
Julian Soles is a seasoned leader in operational and technical innovation within the natural resources and heavy industry sectors, with a strong focus on operations, product development, sustainability and safety. Throughout his career he has played a pivotal role in advancing offshore operations, mining technology and zero-emission solutions for industrial applications. Soles has held several senior leadership positions at Transocean, the world’s largest offshore drilling contractor, and global mining company Anglo American. He was most recently CEO of First Mode, where he led a global team in designing, manufacturing and deploying the world’s largest hydrogen-powered mining haul truck and bringing to market the first commercial hybrid solution for ultra class haulage. He holds Bachelor of Engineering and Master of Science degrees in naval architecture and offshore engineering from University College London and an MBA from the University of Houston.
Mikko Keto, FLSmidth CEO states: “We are at a pivotal point in our transformation journey having spent the past few years defining our core business and strengthening our operations to ensure we can drive more consistent value creation. The appointment of Toni and Julian to our Executive Management team advances our ambition to shift towards business growth as we look to become an even stronger partner to our customers. Each of them brings an innovative, customer-first approach to leadership and deep expertise in growing and transforming established global companies.”
Once Julian and Toni have joined FLSmidth, Group Executive Management will consist of the following members:
- Mikko Keto, CEO
- Roland M. Andersen, CFO
- Cori Petersen, Chief People and Sustainability Officer
- Mikko Tepponen, Chief Digital Officer and Chief Operations Officer
- Julian Soles, President, Products Business Line
- Toni Laaksonen, President, Service Business Line
- Pat Turner, President, Pumps, Cyclones and Valves Business Line
- Christopher Ashworth, President, FLSmidth Cement
Contacts:
Media
Jannick Denholt, +45 21 69 66 57, jli@flsmidth.com
Investors Relations
Andreas Holkjær, +45 24 85 03 84, andh@flsmidth.com
Jannick Denholt, +45 21 69 66 57, jli@flsmidth.com
About FLSmidth
FLSmidth is a full flowsheet technology and service supplier to the global mining and cement industries. We enable our customers to improve performance, lower operating costs and reduce environmental impact. MissionZero is our sustainability ambition towards zero emissions in mining and cement by 2030. We work within fully validated Science-Based Targets, have a clear commitment to improving the sustainability performance of the global mining and cement industries and aim to become carbon neutral in our own operations by 2030. www.flsmidth.com.
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