Press Release

Kraton Polymers Lead the Way in SBS at Interoute 2004 September 29 -October 1, 2004 Montpellier, France

LONDON (August 9, 2004) – Kraton Polymers will bring the benefits of its industry-leading Kraton SBS polymers to the French roads community when it meets at Interoute 2004 in Montpellier, September 29 – October 1, 2004.

Kraton Polymers pioneered styrene-butadiene-styrene (SBS) block copolymers in the 1960s. Its range of Kraton polymers can extend the life-time of road surfaces by improving the performance of bitumen in extreme hot or cold climates. They also minimise the impact of heavy traffic by reducing rutting and fatigue in all climatic conditions.

With a network of manufacturing, R&D and sales and marketing around the world, Kraton Polymers works in close co-operation with local customers to ensure the global roads industry can apply the advantages of SBS modification while taking specific local requirements into account.

Stephen Evans, global SBS business manager at Kraton Polymers, said: “The use of SBS in road applications is growing with parties across the industry, from local authorities to road contractors and bitumen suppliers, interested in the long-term benefits it can bring. In addition to the traditional performance benefits associated with SBS, innovations are helping the industry meet new environmental standards by improving road surface durability and minimising material use through reducing surface thickness.

“Interoute provides the ideal opportunity not only to share the advantages of SBS with players from across the French and southern European roads industries, but also to help us improve our understanding of the particular needs of potential customers in the region.”

About Kraton

Kraton Polymers LLC is a premier, global specialty chemicals company and is the world’s largest producer of styrenic block copolymers (“SBCs”), a family of products whose chemistry was pioneered by Kraton over forty years ago.  SBCs are highly-engineered synthetic elastomers, which enhance the performance of products by delivering a variety of attributes, including greater flexibility, resilience, strength, durability and processability.  Kraton polymers are used in a wide range of applications including road and roofing materials, numerous consumer products (e.g., diapers, tool handles and toothbrushes), tapes, labels, medical applications, packaging, automotive and footwear products.  Kraton has the leading position in nearly all of its core markets and is the only producer of SBCs with global manufacturing capability.  Its production facilities are located in the United States, The Netherlands, Germany, France, Brazil, and Japan.

Polymer Holdings LLC is the parent company of Kraton Polymers LLC and has no material assets other than its investment in Kraton Polymers LLC. 

Kraton, the Kraton logo and design are trademarks of Kraton Polymers LLC.

Forward Looking Statements

This presentation may include “forward-looking statements” which are statements other than statements of historical fact and are often characterized by the use of words such as “believes,” “expects,” “estimates,” “projects,” “may,” “will,” “intends,” “plans” or “anticipates,” or by discussions of strategy, plans or intentions. All forward-looking statements in this presentation are made based on management's current expectations and estimates, which involve risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause results to differ materially from those expressed in forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. We assume no obligation to update such information.