ALMACO Group Establishes a Modernization Division and Appoints Petteri Keso as its President 

ALMACO Group has established a dedicated Modernization Division and appointed Petteri Keso as its President. Keso joined ALMACO on September 21, 2026, after more than 20 years at Royal Caribbean Group, and is a member of ALMACO’s Group Management Team. With the new division, ALMACO brings its modernization expertise together in one organization and makes a long-term commitment to a business the company was built on. 

Until now, ALMACO’s modernization projects have been delivered within the EPC Division, alongside newbuilding projects. The cruise modernization market is growing, and ALMACO wants to give the business the dedicated focus, leadership and resources it needs to grow with it. The Modernization Division has its own management team and its own sales and project organization, formed around ALMACO’s current modernization specialists and strengthened with new recruits who know the business. 

The division focuses on modernization projects for cruise ships and other passenger vessels, covering accommodation, public areas, catering areas and laundry areas. It works with shipowners who want one partner to take responsibility for the modernization of these areas, whether the work is carried out in a drydock or while the vessel is in service. 

Modernization is where ALMACO began 

ALMACO was founded in Turku in 1998 to bring refurbishment work to cruise ships operating in the Americas, in a drydock or while sailing, and modernization has been at the core of the business ever since. Recent projects include a new food hall concept onboard Marella Voyager, new galleys, bars and public areas onboard AROYA Cruises’ Aroya, staterooms onboard Carnival Elation and Carnival Conquest, and new accommodation blocks onboard Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas and Harmony of the Seas. 

Shipowners are keeping their vessels in service longer and upgrading them to meet passenger expectations and new regulations, while drydock capacity close to the main cruise markets is expanding. ALMACO expects steady demand for years to come and intends to strengthen its position as a leading partner for major cruise fleet modernizations. 

The Modernization Division works closely with ALMACO’s EPC, Catering Systems and Lifecycle Services divisions. Modernization customers get access to the same design and engineering, procurement, production and aftersales capabilities that ALMACO brings to its newbuilding projects, and project capacity can be scaled up with resources from the other divisions when schedules demand it. 

Two decades on the owner’s side 

Petteri Keso brings more than 20 years of experience from Royal Caribbean Group, where he most recently served as Associate Vice President, Global Marine Operations. Over the years his responsibilities have covered fleet modernization and refurbishment programs, hotel maintenance and newbuilding projects, including the role of Project Director for Harmony of the Seas. A naval architect by training, he started his career at the Helsinki shipyard before moving to the owner’s side in 2004. He will be located in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, close to ALMACO’s major cruise customers. 

Keso and ALMACO first worked together in 2005, when Enchantment of the Seas was lengthened with a new midsection and ALMACO refurbished more than 500 staterooms and several public areas onboard. 

Building the team is the division’s first task. ALMACO is recruiting experienced modernization professionals for the new organization, and the dedicated division also gives the company’s current specialists a clear career path in the business. Open positions are published on almaco.cc. 

A long-term commitment 

“Modernization is where ALMACO started, and it has never left the company,” says Vilhelm Roberts, Executive Chairman of ALMACO Group. “Establishing a dedicated division is the board’s way of saying that this business deserves the same long-term commitment and investment as our newbuilding and catering businesses. We are in it for the long run, and Petteri is the right person to lead it.” 

“Our customers want a partner who takes full responsibility for the modernization of accommodation, public areas, catering and laundries in a tight drydock window, and that is what ALMACO does best,” says Björn Stenwall, President & CEO of ALMACO Group. “A division with its own team and its own leadership is how we make sure the business gets our full focus. Petteri has spent two decades as the customer in exactly these projects. He knows what owners expect from a modernization partner, and he knows how to build a team that delivers it.” 

“I have known ALMACO from the owner’s side for a long time, so I know the quality and the commitment this team brings to a drydock,” says Petteri Keso. “What attracted me is the clear decision to invest in modernization as a business of its own. My job is to build a division that owners see as the safest choice for their most demanding revitalization projects, and to make it a place where modernization professionals want to build their careers.” 

For more information, contact

Petteri Keso

President, Modernization Division

+1 954 294 0600

[email protected]