11/23/2007 - Süd-Chemie to expand catalyst production in Bitterfeld

Süd-Chemie Zeolites GmbH, a subsidiary of the leading specialty chemicals company Süd-Chemie AG, Munich, has begun to expand its production plant for new specialty zeolites and also construct a new waste-water processing plant at its Bitterfeld site.

The first sod was turned on 23 November on the site owned by Süd-Chemie Zeolites GmbH in the Bitterfeld-Wolfen Chemistry Park, in the presence of representatives from politics and industry. These included Detlef Schubert, State Secretary at the Ministry of Economics and Labour in Saxony-Anhalt, Uwe Schulze, District Administrator for the Anhalt-Bitterfeld region, Petra Wust, Lord Mayor of Bitterfeld-Wolfen, Joachim Schunke, Local Mayor of Greppin, Matthias Gabriel, Managing Director of P-D ChemiePark Bitterfeld-Wolfen GmbH, as well as the Managing Directors of Süd-Chemie Zeolites GmbH, Dr. Alois Waldburg-Zeil and Dr. Ernst Köhler.

The investment volume amounts to a double-digit million euro figure. In the wake of this capacity expansion, the Bitterfeld workforce is to be increased from just under fifty to more than sixty employees over the next two years.

From 2009 onwards, the products supplied by the enlarged plant with its significantly increased capacity will include a new type of catalyst, making it possible to manufacture propylene, a high-quality basic chemical, from coal and natural gas instead of the conventional source of oil, which is now becoming scarcer and increasingly expensive. Propylene is an intermediate used to produce polypropylene, the world´s most sought-after plastic.

Specific use will be made of the zeolites manufactured in Bitterfeld in processes developed by Lurgi AG, Frankfurt, which are used in China to produce propylene from methanol. The methanol required is extracted from coal, which is plentiful in China, also with the aid of Süd-Chemie catalysts based on the MegaMethanol® process developed by Lurgi.

Süd-Chemie's zeolites are additionally used to manufacture high-octane petrol, winterproof diesel, as well as in environmental technology to purify emission from diesel-driven vehicles, thermal power stations and industrial plants.

In view of the exceptionally regular structure of their pores and their high selectivity in relation to the chemical substances treated, for instance hydrocarbons, zeolites are key elements in the specialty catalysts and adsorbents used in refining technology, petrochemistry and environmental technology.

Dr. Hans-Joachim Müller, a member of Süd-Chemie AG's Managing Board said, "The zeolites we will be producing in Bitterfeld are based on Süd-Chemie's unique technology. For the first time, our customers will be offered an alternative basis for their propylene and polypropylene production, namely natural gas and coal instead of oil, which is becoming increasingly expensive."

Dr. Hans Jürgen Wernicke, Deputy Chairman of Süd-Chemie AG's Managing Board commented, "By enlarging our zeolite production capacities in Bitterfeld, we are responding to the sharp rise in worldwide demand for these specialty catalysts and expanding our leading position in this market of the future which is currently reporting double-digit growth rates. As a result, Bitterfeld will become a second strong foothold for zeolite production in the Süd-Chemie Group, along with the Süd-Chemie Zeolites plant in Richards Bay in South Africa."

Munich and Bitterfeld, 23 November 2007

Enquiries:

Süd-Chemie AG
Corporate Public Relations
Patrick Salchow, Jochen Orlowski
Tel. +49 (0) 89 5110-250, -247

Süd-Chemie AG (www.sud-chemie.com) is a publicly quoted (Security Identification Number ISIN: DE0007292005; WKN: 729 200), independent specialty chemicals company headquartered in Munich, Germany and operating on a worldwide scale. The common denominator of Süd-Chemie‘s products and innovations is the efficient and sparing use of natural resources to enhance the quality of life for humans and the environment. Key markets served by the company‘s Adsorbents Division include the consumer-goods, packaging and foundry industries, as well as the paper and plastics industries and water treatment. Products manufactured by the Catalysts Division offer solutions for the chemicals, petrochemicals and refinery industries, for energy storage and hydrogen production as well as off-gas purification. Süd-Chemie generated group sales of just over €1 billion in 2006, approx. 80% of these outside Germany. In mid 2007, the group employed some 5,000 people at its 70 sales and production sites worldwide. Süd-Chemie is celebrating its 150th anniversary in 2007.