Press Releases

• Official closing effective as of October 1, 2011
• Joint venture to be in a leading position in the global styrenics market

Ludwigshafen, Germany, and Rolle, Switzerland – October 4th, 2011 – BASF SE and INEOS AG have received approvals from all relevant antitrust authorities for the formation of the joint venture Styrolution. Official closing will be effective as of October 1, 2011. From this date on Styrolution will operate independently. 

Dr. Martin Brudermüller, Vice Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE and responsible for the Plastics segment said: “From day one Styrolution will be a global leader in its industry with an excellent competitive position. We are convinced that the decision to combine our styrenics activities in a joint venture is the right one.”

Jim Ratcliffe, Chairman, INEOS Capital, commented, “Styrolution has the people, the products and scale to compete effectively in world markets. Bringing together plant, products and entrepreneurial employees from BASF and INEOS into a new joint venture company with a clear strategy, provides a firm foundation for long-term success and growth". 

BASF and INEOS have combined their global business activities in styrene monomers (SM), polystyrene (PS), acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), styrene-butadiene block copolymers (SBC) and other styrene-based copolymers (SAN, AMSAN, ASA, MABS) as well as copolymer blends into the new joint venture, Styrolution. The business with expandable polystyrene is not part of the transaction. BASF and INEOS will retain their respective businesses. 

The company headquarters will be located in Frankfurt/Main, Germany. In the joint venture 50% of the shares will be owned by BASF and 50% by INEOS. Styrolution will have sites in Germany, Belgium, France, Sweden, Korea, India, Thailand, the USA, Canada and Mexico. In 2010 the joint venture had pro forma sales of about €6.4 billion and employed approximately 3,400 people.

Styrenics are mainly used for household and office products, for electrical and communication devices and for packaging. Styrene-based copolymers are thermoplastic resins on the basis of the monomers styrene and acrylonitrile. They are mainly used in the automotive and technical industries as well as for many everyday products. 

More information under www.styrolution.com

Press contact:

INEOS Holdings AG
Richard Longden 
Phone: +41 21 627 7063 
Mob: +41 21 799 626 123
richard.longden@ineos.com

BASF SE
Michael Grabicki
Phone: +49 621 60-99938
Fax: +49 621 60-92693
michael.grabicki@basf.com

About INEOS

INEOS is one of the world's leading manufacturer of petrochemicals, speciality chemicals and oil products. Comprising 15 businesses and with a production network spanning 61 manufacturing facilities in 13 countries. The group employs 15,000 people producing more than 40 million tonnes of petrochemicals and a turnover of $40bn. Further information atwww.ineos.com. 

About BASF

BASF is the world’s leading chemical company: The Chemical Company. Its portfolio ranges from chemicals, plastics, performance products and agricultural products to oil and gas. As a reliable partner BASF creates chemistry to help its customers in virtually all industries to be more successful. With its high-value products and intelligent solutions, BASF plays an important role in finding answers to global challenges such as climate protection, energy efficiency, nutrition and mobility. BASF posted sales of about €63.9 billion in 2010 and had approximately 109,000 employees as of the end of the year. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchanges in Frankfurt (BAS), London (BFA) and Zurich (AN). Further information on BASF is available on the Internet at www.basf.com or in its Social Media Newsroom atnewsroom.basf.com.