require the establishment ofauthorities which will test the productsto international standards.

Xiandai Huagong, 20 Oct 2005, 25 (10), 6-11,13 (inChinese)

Global demand for platinum to go ongrowing

The global demand for platinum isexpected to go on growing in thefuture, having been increasing for sixyears in succession. The growth willmainly go to the account of theautomotive industry, which needsmore and more platinum for catalyticconverters for combustion engines.On 28 Nov 2005, the platinum pricegrew to $1000/troy ounce in NewYork. The last time it was this highwas 25 years ago. The platinum pricewas around $650/ounce in 2002, lessthan $500/ounce in 2000 and about$350/ounce in 1997. Palladium isanother metal used in themanufacturing of catalytic converters.In late 2005 the price of palladium isaround $260/troy ounce.

Hospodarske Noviny, 29 Nov 2005, 49 (231), 22, 30Nov 2005, 49 (232), 23 (in Czech)

Demand for platinum is expected torise in 2005

Platinum demand is likely to grow 2%to 6.71 M oz in 2005, according toJohnson Matthey. The expectedincrease is attributed to automakers’plan to produce lighter cars andplatinum’s growing electricalapplications.

Materials World, Dec 2005, 13 (12), 7

Global palladium sales to rise by two-thirds in 2006

Norilsk Nickel (NN) (Russia), theworld’s largest palladium and nickelproducer, expects global palladiumsales to rise by two-thirds year-on-year in 2006. Thanks to a newtechnology developed by Umicore,palladium can be used whenmanufacturing catalytic converters fordiesel engines. So far it has beenused only for catalytic converters forpetrol engines. For example, thecatalytic converters used by GeneralMotors can use platinum as well aspalladium. This will enable thecompany to respond to the

development of the prices of bothproducts. On 6 Dec 2005, thepalladium price reached $272/troyounce and the platinum price came to$994/ounce on the London exchange.Each catalytic converter contains 4-5 g of the precious metal onaverage. The main platinum andpalladium suppliers to the worldmarket are Russia and South Africa.Global platinum consumption in theautomotive industry has grown to thecurrent 120 tonnes from 78 tonnes in2002. This accounts for 57% of itstotal worldwide consumption.

Hospodarske Noviny, 7 Dec 2005, 49 (237), 24 (inCzech)

COMPANYNEWS

Innovation boost at BASF

For its fiscal 2006, BASF plans tospend €1.5 bn on R&D (+10% on itsfiscal 2005 and 18% on 2004) with afocus on five clusters: energymanagement, raw material change(including renewable raw materials,€100 M), plant biotechnology(enzyme catalysis, €260 M),nanotechnology (nanotechnologycentre opens in Singapore in 1Q2006), and white biotechnology (€150M).

Chemistry and Industry (London), 5 Dec 2005, (23), 5

BASF honoured for TPP pellets

Frost and Sullivan gave its 2005Product Leadership of the Year Awardto BASF for producingtriphenylphosphine (TPP), the first ofits kind to come in pellet form. Theproduct effectively reduces dustformation to improve handling andprocessing, thereby enhancing safety.TPP works as an excellentintermediate that may be used forseveral applications such as coatings.TPP is sold by BASF both in pelletform and melt formulation. BASF’suse of a single-line TPP plant havingcontinuous product processing putsan end to cross-contaminationconcerns.

Paint & Coatings Industry (PCI), Nov 2005, 21 (11),18-19

Degussa’s White Bio plans

Degussa will set up a ‘Science toBusiness Centre’ for whitebiotechnology along the lines of asimilar nanotronics facility establishedin early 2005. The €50 M facility,which will be launched on 1 Jan 2006,will employ 60 Degussa scientists inlaboratories and pilot plants. The staffwill develop new biotechnologyproducts and processes derived fromnatural raw materials in variousapplications.

Speciality Chemicals, Nov 2005, 25 (9), 12 &Kemivarlden, Dec 2005, (12), 15-16 (in Swedish)

BASF launches bid for Engelhard

BASF has initiated an unexpected $4.9 bn hostile bid to acquire UScatalyst and pigment maker Engelhard.The takeover would be BASF’s largestpurchase hitherto. It would make theGerman company a leader in catalysttechnology and put it ahead of DowChemical as the number one globalchemical producer. Engelhard hasurged shareholders to “take no actionat this time.” The company’s board willconsider BASF’s offer “and will make arecommendation to stockholders in duecourse.” BASF’s $37/share cash offerrepresents a 23% premium. Engelhardhas a number of “poison pill” provisionsthat would make it difficult for BASF toassume quick control. But BASFintends to succeed. It “plans tonominate candidates for election toEngelhard’s board of directors.”Engelhard’s $2.3 bn in sales, excludingmetal trading, would give BASFchemical sales of $40.5 bn and make itthe largest chemical producerworldwide. BASF’s small catalystbusiness would become a significantglobal player. BASF would also acquirea 30% share of the expandingautomotive catalyst sector and wouldbe an important maker of pearlescentpigments used in cosmetics, paints,and plastics. Not all analysts areenthusiastic about BASF’s plans. Creditrating agency Standard & Poor’splaced BASF’s long- and short-termcorporate credit ratings on watch with“negative implications.”

Chemical and Engineering News, 9 Jan 2006, 84 (2), 5& Handelsblatt Wirtschafts- und Finanzzeitung, 4 Jan2006, (3), 1 (in German) & Press release from: BASFAG, D-67056 Ludwigshafen, Germany. Tel: +49 0621604 8230. Fax: +49 0621 602 2500. E-mail:investorrelations@basf-ag.de. Website:http://www.basf-ag.de (3 Jan 2006)

2 FEBRUARY 2006

F O C U S O N C A T A L Y S T S