BASF expands coatings business in ASEAN

* Eason Paint appointed as toll manufacturer

* BASF will supply services to motorcycle customers directly

Bangkok / Münster. BASF has expanded its coatings business in ASEAN, with Thailand at the center , to serve the large coatings market in the region for motorcycles, industrial coatings, and the automotive industry.

BASF (Thai) Limited today reached an agreement with Eason Paint Plc (Thailand) to be come the manufacturing base for BASF customers across ASEAN , including automotive and industrial coatings customers . BASF motorcycle coatings in Thailand will be exclusively produced by Eason Paint.

BASF also signed an agreement today to acquire the motorcycle coatings business of NOF ( Thailand ) Limited, establishing its own sales and marketing function in Thailand to support customers in the ASEAN region. As one of world’s leading coatings suppliers, BASF will now directly provide its full set of competencies to the customers in the region and fully participate in all market opportunities.

The signing ceremony for the agreement was held in Bangkok on December 11 in the presence of Mr. Pracha Chivapornthip, Chairman and Managing Director of BASF ( Thai ) , Mr. Mutsuo Aoki, Group Vice President, Regional Business Management BASF Coatings Asia Pacific , Mr. Sanan Eksangkul , P resident of Eason Paint and Ms. Petcharat Eksangkul, Managing Director of Eason Paint. Ms Jongluck Nitikitpaibool, the new head for BASF’s coatings business in the ASEAN region was also present.

The coatings market in ASEAN, with a total size of EUR 2.8 billion, accounts for about 15% of the entire coatings market in Asia-Pacific. Thailand represents the largest coatings market within ASEAN but there is also significant growth in Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines. ASEAN is therefore of increasing importance in the overall coatings strategy of BASF. “We foresee high growth potentials in the regional coatings industry and we are determined to strengthen our position here with high-quality technologies and comprehensive service s ”, said Mr. Aoki.

Pursuing this strategy, BASF will continue to work with strong partners. “T he set-up with Eason Paint manufacturing BASF’s first-class paint locally is an ideal fit for us,” explained Mr. Pracha. “We have strong confidence in Eason Paint as our long-term business partner. O ur combined competencies in technology, production and service will create added value to our customers in ASEAN not only in the motorcycle business but also in automotive OEM and industrial coatings ,” he added. With the new business set-up, BASF aims at successfully supporting automotive and industrial coatings customers in the region by providing the highest level of technical service and customer care well known by BASF’s global customers.

About BASF Coatings

BASF Coatings, the Coatings Division of the BASF Group, develops, produces and markets a high-quality range of innovative automotive OEM coatings, automotive refinishes and industrial coatings as well as decorative paints. BASF has significant market positions in the Coatings sector in Europe, North America, South America and the Asia/Pacific region. In 2007 BASF Coatings achieved global sales of almost 2.6 billion euros. The internet address of BASF Coatings is www.basf-coatings.com. You can download a copy of BASF Coatings customer magazine “COATINGSPARTNER” from www.coatingspartner.com.

About BASF in Thailand

BASF has been operating in Thailand for more than 40 years. The primary activities in Thailand are mainly import sales, local production, sales and customer service. The business in Thailand involves various products including coatings, crop protection, construction chemicals, acrylics and superabsorbents, dispe r sions, textile and leather chemicals, industrial chemicals, plastics, polyurethanes, care chemicals, automotive and performance chemicals.

About Eason Paint

Eason Paint Public Company Limited engages in the manufacturing of motorcycle coatings products and in the manufacturing and distribution of industrial paints for plastic components, packaging paint coating, and offset printing ink. The company’s main customers are OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers). The company produces paints under licensed foreign technological know-how, through business alliances with the patents holders and the company’s own know-how obtained via research and development (R&D) and the company’s extensive manufacturing experience. The company distributes its paint products through joint venture marketing arms and through direct sale to the customers (end-users). Besides motorcycle paints, other active product lines Eason manufactures are can coating, offset printing ink and other industrial paints. For more information, visit http://www.easonpaint.co.th.

About NOF (Thailand) Limited

Founded in April 1986, NOF (Thailand) Ltd. (NTL) is a joint venture of Eason Paint (51%), BASF Coatings Japan (40%), and Miki (Japan) (9%). Through the acquisition of the coatings business from NOF Japan in 2000/2005, BASF Coatings gained ownership in this joint-venture for motorcycle coatings in Thailand. The role of NTL was the sale and marketing of motorcycle paints manufactured by Eason under license from BCJ to Japanese motorcycle customers in Thailand.