Languages

Finnish, English

A man in a dark suit, light blue shirt, and patterned tie stands against a plain light purple background, smiling slightly with one hand in his pocket.

Niilo Melkas

Associate Competition & Regulatory

A man in a dark suit, light blue shirt, and patterned tie stands against a plain light purple background, smiling slightly with one hand in his pocket.

Languages

Finnish, English

Niilo advises domestic and international clients on EU and Finnish competition law matters including cases involving antitrust enforcement, merger control, state aid and regulatory proceeding.

He also provides advice on regulatory issues and on foreign direct investment (FDI) screening processes.

Selected References

Parties:

UPM-Kymmene Corporation

Transaction:

Hannes Snellman has been advising UPM-Kymmene Corporation (UPM) on all legal aspects of the strategic review and separation of the UPM Plywood business area from the UPM Group (announced September 2025), including the carve-out, partial demerger, listing and related transactions and commercial arrangements.

Value:

Not public

Role:

Counsel to UPM-Kymmene Corporation

Contacts

Parties:

Leppäkoski Group, Porin Energia Oy

Transaction:

Hannes Snellman advised Leppäkoski Group in the structured sales process of Leppäkosken Sähkö Oy to Porin Energia Oy. Leppäkosken Sähkö Oy operates electricity distribution system supplying electricity to more than 30,000 customers in the Pirkanmaa and Satakunta regions.

The completion of the transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to be completed by the end of 2026.

Value:

Not Public

Role:

Counsel to Leppäkoski Group

Contacts

Parties:

UPM-Kymmene Corporation, Sappi Limited

Transaction:

Hannes Snellman is advising UPM-Kymmene Corporation (UPM) in establishing a joint venture to combine UPM’s graphic paper business and Sappi Limited’s graphic paper business in Europe with a combined enterprise value of the respective businesses of €1,420 million, excluding the value of expected synergy benefits. The joint venture is to include entire UPM Communication Papers business, including eight UPM Communication Papers’ paper mills at Kymi, Rauma and Jämsänkoski in Finland; Nordland, Augsburg, Schongau in Germany; UPM Caledonian paper mill in the UK, and Blandin paper mill in the USA.

The contemplated joint venture represents a decisive response to the structural changes in the European graphic paper industry, offering a path to strengthen the resilience of the industry and provide long-term commitment and supply security to graphic paper customers.

The complex, multi-jurisdictional transaction with agreements covering both JV structure, governance, carve-out and commercial arrangements required close-knit cooperation with broad UPM team and across all advisors.

Value:

Combined enterprise value of the respective businesses of EUR 1,420 million

Role:

Counsel to UPM-Kymmene Corporation

Contacts

Professional Background

  • Associate, Hannes Snellman, 2026-

Education

  • Master of Laws, University of Helsinki, 2026
  • Bachelor of Social Sciences, University of Helsinki, 2025