LANXESS establishes strong presence in Russian and CIS markets

New independent sales company opens Moscow office / Russia represents next step in LANXESS BRIC strategy / Production facility planned for 2010.

Specialty chemicals group LANXESS AG officially launched today its new, independent sales company in Moscow to manage the company's business in Russia and other countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). OOO LANXESS’ office will be located in The Federation Tower and will primarily be marketing high-performance rubber, chemical and plastic products.

“Our commitment to Russia represents a major step in the long-term growth strategy of our company, especially in the BRIC countries, which already account for about 15 percent of Group sales”, said Axel C. Heitmann, Chairman of the Board of Management.

LANXESS achieved annual sales of roughly 40 million Euro in Russia in 2007 and will initially have in Moscow a team of 30 employees headed by Georges Barbey, General Director of OOO LANXESS. It also opened recently a branch office in Kiev, Ukraine. The company expects Russian and CIS economic growth rates over the next few years to be significantly above that of Western Europe. This growth will be driven by the automotive, tire, agricultural, chemical, construction, and electronic industries, which need the high-quality specialty chemical products that LANXESS produces.

“We see major development potential for us in Russia beyond the current economic crisis, and we aim to consistently expand our market share in the future”, said Werner Breuers, Member of the Board of Management.