Celanese Announces Contemplated Closure of Two European Manufacturing Facilities

Mon, November 4 2013

Employee consultation process to begin at Roussillon, France, acetic anhydride plant and Tarragona, Spain, vinyl acetate unit

DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Celanese Corporation (NYSE:CE), a global technology and specialty materials company, today announced that its French and Spanish subsidiaries have informed their employee delegates in Roussillon, France, and work council in Tarragona, Spain, of their intent to initiate an information and consultation process on the contemplated closure of both the Roussillon acetic anhydride facility and the vinyl acetate monomer (VAM) production unit in Tarragona.

Celanese announced on May 22, 2013, its intent to find a credible buyer for both properties, with the primary focus on industrial candidates. Celanese placed great effort in identifying credible buyers that could ensure sustainable operations, retain employees and meet the financial criteria defined by the company to ensure successful future operations of the VAM production unit in Tarragona and the acetic anhydride plant in Roussillon. To date, no credible buyers have been identified and no offers for acquiring these facilities were made.

Therefore, today the company regretfully announces its intent to initiate discussions concerning the possible closure of both the acetic anhydride facility in Roussillon and the VAM production unit in Tarragona. This action is initiated to safeguard the competitiveness of the Celanese acetyl business.

The need for these contemplated projects emerged from an assessment of Celanese’s overall corporate strategy, which included an assessment of the company’s global manufacturing facilities. Specifically, in support of the company’s acetyl portfolio, the manufacturing footprint strategy favors integrated production sites that provide critical economies of scale.

Celanese subsidiaries that operate these facilities expect to soon begin the consultation process with local employee representatives to mitigate the social impact of these contemplated closures to the best possible extent.

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 7,600 employees worldwide and had 2012 net sales of $6.4 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, and other information that is not historical information. When used in this release, the words “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 will realize these expectations or that these beliefs 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.

Celanese Corporation
Investor Relations
Jon Puckett, +1-972-443-4965
Jon.Puckett@celanese.com
or
Media – North America
Travis Jacobsen, +1-972-443-3750
William.Jacobsen@celanese.com
Media – Europe
Jens Kurth, +49 69 45009 1574
J.Kurth@celanese.com

Source: Celanese Corporation