February 8, 2006 - As part of an ongoing review of the company’s manufacturing assets to assess their long-term viability, Basell is planning to close its 260 KT per year LIPP polypropylene technology plant in Pernis, The Netherlands by the middle of 2007.

“It is vital that we continuously look closely at all of our manufacturing assets to ensure alignment with supply/demand balances now and those anticipated for the future,” said Werner Breuers, president of Basell Polyolefins Europe. “Having exceptional or leading operational excellence is not enough to ensure success in our industry.”

Breuers added that there is a key focus in Basell to operate world-scale polypropylene plants utilising one of the company’s proprietary manufacturing technologies, the Spheripol and Spherizone processes.

“There will be no disruption for our customers currently supplied by the Pernis plant,” Breuers said. “We have enough PP capacity in the European region to fulfil the needs of our customers going forward even with the closure at Pernis.”

The Pernis plant is mainly operated by Shell employees with some Basell employees at the site. “By making our intentions regarding the plant known now,” Breuers said, “there is a considerable amount of time to work with the employees at the site regarding their future situations following the closure of the plant.”

Basell is the world's largest producer of polypropylene and advanced polyolefin products, a leading supplier of polyethylene and catalysts, and a global leader in the development and licensing of polypropylene and polyethylene processes. Basell, together with its joint ventures, has manufacturing facilities around the world and sells products in more than 120 countries. Additional information about Basell is available at www.basell.com.

For more information contact Chantal Sohm, Basell Corporate Communications, at +33 1 55 51 21 19 or chantal.sohm@basell.com