Degussa To Invest $6.6 Million In Janesville, Wisconsin Plant 

Site Additions Set Stage For Growth of Care and Surface Specialties In North America 

JANESVILLE, Wis., July 19, 2007 – Degussa, the world’s leading specialty chemical company, announced today a $6.6 million expansion at its Janesville site plant to strengthen its Care and Surface Specialties business.  

The expansion, which will allow Degussa to more efficiently respond to customers’ orders, is scheduled to be completed by the end of the summer. Care and surface specialty chemicals are used in everyday essential products such as shampoos, deodorants and shower gels.  

“This substantial investment supports our commitment to the Janesville site, which is one of the cornerstones of our business,” said Dr. Reinhold Brand, President of Goldschmidt Chemical Corporation and Senior Vice President and General Manager of Degussa’s Care & Surface Specialties North America Business Unit. “The area has a highly skilled workforce and a positive business climate.”  

Dieter Bettinger, Degussa Site Manager in Janesville, said he was excited by the expansion. “The investment by Degussa is a vote of confidence not only in our facility but also in Degussa’s commitment to the Janesville community,” said Bettinger. “Thanks to Degussa’s innovative research and development, our specialty chemicals business is growing and we are expanding our Janesville plant to accommodate it.”  

Bettinger said the $6.6 million expansion plans are in three different areas of the plant:  

–  An Emollient Ester Project, which will bring a new product line to the Janesville site. Emollient esters are mainstay ingredients in personal care products. “Janesville will be the first Degussa facility in the US to produce both emollient esters and sorbitol esters,” said Bettinger. “The new facility has a design capacity of more than 18 million pounds per year.”  

–  A Belt Pastillation Project, which will put a new shape (a pastille) to a well known product for the hair care rinse market.   “Now we are only able to offer this product in the form of flakes which are cumbersome to handle due to their irregular shape,” said Bettinger. “This new equipment will help to make pellets which are evenly shaped and less expensive, greatly benefiting Degussa’s customers.”  

–  A Methyl Chloride Recovery Project, which will aid the environment by voluntarily reducing emissions. “We are voluntarily spending millions of dollars to re-circulate methyl chloride emissions through a chiller internally at the plant,” said Bettinger. “We have selected the most efficient technology using very cold liquid nitrogen to re-cover methyl chloride internally at the site.”  

Dr. Brand added that the $6.6 million expansion will give Degussa the ability to use the latest technology to benefit the company’s products, obtain better productivity at the plant and improve the company’s already high customer satisfaction rate.”  

"We have been pleased with the quality of operation of our plant in Janesville and believe that building on the infrastructure already in place will demonstrate our continued leadership of our business on a worldwide basis,” Dr. Brand added. “We are ensuring Degussa continues to be an essential member of the community and a contributor to the economy in the future.”  

Degussa: Creating Essentials™
Degussa Corporation is part of Degussa GmbH – a wholly owned subsidiary of the RAG Group. Degussa GmbH is the global market leader in specialty chemicals. Its business is creating essentials: innovative products and system solutions that make indispensable contributions to its customers’ success. In fiscal 2006 around 36,000 employees worldwide generated sales of 10.9 billion euros and operating profits (EBIT) of more than 870 million euros.