Celanese Confirms Permanent 50 Percent Capacity Reduction at Lanaken, Belgium Acetate Tow Plant

Tue, December 1 2015

Consultation process with employee representatives now complete

DALLAS & LANAKEN, Belgium--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Celanese Corporation (NYSE: CE), a global technology and specialty materials company, today confirmed it will proceed with permanently reducing capacity at its Lanaken, Belgium, acetate tow production facility by 50 percent, as previously proposed. This decision results from continuing declines in the global demand for acetate tow products, especially in Europe.

The Celanese management in Lanaken has completed the consultation process with employee representatives and agreed upon a social plan aimed at minimizing the effects of the restructuring measures on the impacted employees.

“The declines in geographic demand, anticipated industry consumption patterns, and the site’s high costs led us to proceed with the proposed 50 percent capacity reduction at the Lanaken facility. We are fully committed to treating all affected employees respectfully and would like to express our sincere appreciation for their hard work and loyalty to the company throughout the years,” said Scott Sutton, president, Materials Solutions for Celanese.

The company will continue to reliably supply customers from its acetate tow facilities in Narrows, Virginia; Ocotlan, Mexico; and from the remaining capacity at the Lanaken site located in the Belgian province of Limburg, which will continue to operate with a nameplate capacity of approximately 26,000 tons per year.

As a result of the restructuring measures at the Lanaken facility, Celanese expects to record exit costs of approximately $35 million to $40 million with the majority of cash outflows occurring over the next six months. These expenses will be excluded from the company’s adjusted earnings per share and operating EBIT measures.

About Celanese

Celanese Corporation is a global technology leader in the production of differentiated chemistry solutions and specialty materials used in most major industries and consumer applications. With sales almost equally divided between North America, Europe and Asia, the company uses the full breadth of its global chemistry, technology and business expertise to create value for customers and the corporation. Celanese partners with customers to solve their most critical needs while making a positive impact on its communities and the world. Based in Dallas, Texas, Celanese employs approximately 7,500 employees worldwide and had 2014 net sales of $6.8 billion. For more information about Celanese Corporation and its product offerings, visit www.celanese.com or our blog at www.celaneseblog.com.

All registered trademarks are owned by Celanese International Corporation or its affiliates.

Forward-Looking Statements

This release may contain “forward-looking statements,” which include information concerning the company’s plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future revenues or performance, capital expenditures, financing needs and other information that is not historical information. When used in this release, the words “outlook,” “forecast,” “estimates,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “projects,” “plans,” “intends,” “believes,” and variations of such words or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are based upon current expectations and beliefs and various assumptions. There can be no assurance that the company or any of its customers will realize these benefits or that these expectations will prove correct. There are a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements contained in this release. Numerous factors, many of which are beyond the company’s control, could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed as forward-looking statements. Other risk factors include those that are discussed in the company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and the company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which it is made or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20151201005515/en/

Celanese
Investor Relations
Jon Puckett, +1-972-443-4965
jon.puckett@celanese.com
or
Media Relations – Global
W. Travis Jacobsen, +1-972-443-3750
william.jacobsen@celanese.com
or
Media Relations Asia (Shanghai)
Helen Zhang, +86 21 3861 9279
lan.zhang@celanese.com
or
Media Relations Europe (Germany)
Jens Kurth, +49(0)69 45009 1574
j.kurth@celanese.com

Source: Celanese Corporation