Wartsila finds employees manipulated fuel consumption tests

HELSINKI (AP) - Finnish ship turbine and power plant maker Wartsila Corp. says some personnel have manipulated the results of fuel consumption tests conducted on its marine engines.

In an internal audit, the company found that "a limited number of personnel" at its delivery center in Italy had acted against instructions and the company's "code of conduct."

Wartsila on Monday apologized for the violation and said it had since reviewed all test procedures, adding that the deviations were on average 1 percent of fuel consumption and affected about 2 percent of all engine deliveries. Last year, Wartsila's marine engine sales represented 12 percent of total revenue.

The Helsinki-based engineering group employs some 19,000 people in more than 70 countries.

The company's share price was down about 2 percent in afternoon trading in Helsinki.