BASF buys resins

today announced an agreement to acquire resins manufacturer

, a subsidiary of JohnsonDiversey of Sturtevant,

, a cleaning and hygiene products manufacturer.

The agreement, signed on May 1, provides for a sale price of $470 million on a cash and debt-free basis.

The transaction, which is still subject to approval by the relevant authorities, is expected to close by the end of June 2006.

According to BASF, Johnson Polymer is one of the world’s leading producers and suppliers of water-based resins, which are important raw materials for the production of coatings in the automotive, wood, packaging and printing industries.

The global market for water-based resins is said to be growing at an average of five percent per year. Roughly 60 percent of sales, worth approximately $360 million in 2005, are generated in North America. Johnson Polymer has 430 employees and operates two production sites in the United States and one in the Netherlands, as well as technical centers and offices in Asia Pacific.

JohnsonDiversey President and CEO Edward Lonergan commented that the divestiture represents an important step in refocusing on the company’s core business in the commercial cleaning and hygiene market.