BASF Reorganizes Petrochemicals Business

BASF reorganizes its Petrochemicals division effective July 1, 2009. The future organization consists of four (formerly six) business units. The optimized organizational structures will lead to higher efficiency and effectiveness and will open up potentials to even better serve customers´ needs. Customers will benefit from a reduced number of interfaces and a broader portfolio of the respective business units. The new clustering of businesses also comes along with new business opportunities as well as synergy effects out of the BASF Verbund.

"We aim to focus even more closely on our customers within their respective regional markets and enhance efficiency and flexibility at the same time", said Dr. Albert Heuser, President Petrochemicals division. "We want to strengthen the responsibility of the regions considerably this is why we chose to reorganize our division in four regional business units." The new organizational setup is based on a thorough analysis of the market and economic situation, which has fundamentally changed over the last years. Exemplary for this change are the important BASF investments in Nanjing (China) and Port Arthur (USA).

The details of the reorganization are as follows:

• The new business unit Basic Petrochemicals Europe, headed by Dr. Uwe Kirchgäßner, comprises the businesses for cracker products and industrial gases as well as alkylene oxides and glycols in Europe. This reflects a focus on the ethylene based value chain.
• The businesses for acrylics as well as alcohols, solvents & plasticizers in Europe will be consolidated in the new business unit Industrial Petrochemicals Europe, headed by Dr. Detlef Kratz. This reflects a focus on the propylene and raffinate based value chain.
• All businesses of the Petrochemicals division in North America will be consolidated in the business unit Petrochemicals North America, headed by Peter Cella.
• All businesses of the Petrochemicals division in Asia Pacific will be consolidated in the business unit Petrochemicals Asia Pacific headed by Sanjeev Gandhi.