BASF SE : expands Innovation Campus Asia Pacific in Shanghai

• €90 million investment to build additional R&D building and auxiliary facilities

• Strengthens innovation capabilities to support growth industries in Asia Pacific

Ludwigshafen, Germany; Shanghai, China - July 28, 2014 - BASF, the world's leading chemical company, today broke ground on the second phase of its Innovation Campus Asia Pacific at its Pudong site in Shanghai, China. The €90 million expansion consists of an additional regional research and development (R&D) building and auxiliary facilities and it will be completed by the end of 2015.

"By 2020, around 25% of BASF's R&D employees will be located in Asia Pacific. The expansion reinforces BASF's commitment to globalizing its R&D activities and capturing growth opportunities in China and Asia Pacific," said Dr. Andreas Kreimeyer, member of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE and Research Executive Director.

The Innovation Campus is BASF's most important R&D center in the region and is expected to become one of its largest R&D sites outside of Germany. With the expansion, BASF's regional research capabilities will be further strengthened, focusing primarily on advanced materials and systems as well as adding new areas such as formulations and chemical process and engineering serving growth industries such as automotive, construction, health and nutrition, and home and personal care.

"The Innovation Campus Asia Pacific in Shanghai has proven to be an effective platform that not only responds quickly to market needs in China and Asia Pacific, but also connects BASF with the science community in Asia Pacific. The enthusiasm for innovation among our colleagues, customers and partners is the cornerstone of solutions for a sustainable future in the region," said Dr. Martin Brudermüller, Vice Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE, responsible for Asia Pacific.

Eighteen months after its inauguration, the Innovation Campus Asia Pacific has strengthened BASF's position as the preferred innovation partner for customers in the region, for example from the construction, automotive, paint and coatings, home and personal care and packaging industries. Leveraging local market insights and BASF's strong global R&D network, the teams focus on innovative solutions to address the market needs in various industries across the region. For example, the world's first co-extrudable Ultradur® (polybutylene terephthalate) for the reinforcement of thermally insulated polyvinyl chloride (PVC) window profile, was developed together with Dalian Shide Group. Steel in a PVC window profile is replaced with co-extrudable Ultradur to provide high strength but lightweight reinforcement with mechanical properties required to withstand strong winds and excellent thermal insulation, which enables energy-efficient construction.

In Asia, in addition to the Innovation Campus in Shanghai, BASF also has R&D centers in Japan, Singapore and Korea. An Innovation Campus in India is also planned. BASF increased global spending on research and development to €1.8 billion in 2013 (2012: €1.7 billion), with around 10,650 scientists and researchers working in 3,000 research projects. With 1,300 patents filed last year and about 151,000 registrations and intellectual property rights worldwide, BASF is at the top of the global Patent Asset Index for the fifth time in succession.

About BASF Asia Pacific

BASF started doing business in the Asia Pacific region more than a century ago. Today, it is one of the leading chemical companies in the region with a production network of about 100 sites, and operations in 16 countries. In 2013, sales to customers in the region were €12.5 billion (2012: €12.5 billion). As of December 31, 2013, the number of employees at BASF companies in Asia Pacific totaled 16,708.

About BASF

BASF is the world's leading chemical company: The Chemical Company. Its portfolio ranges from chemicals, plastics, performance products and crop protection products to oil and gas. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. Through science and innovation, we enable our customers in nearly every industry to meet the current and future needs of society. Our products and solutions contribute to conserving resources, ensuring nutrition and improving quality of life. We have summed up this contribution in our corporate purpose: We create chemistry for a sustainable future. BASF had sales of about €74 billion in 2013 and over 112,000 employees as of the end of the year. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchanges in Frankfurt (BAS), London (BFA) and Zurich (AN). Further information on BASF is available on the Internet at www.basf.com.