Press Release
Kraton Polymers Announces
That Hurricane Katrina
Did Not Affect Any of Its Operations
HOUSTON, TX - Sept. 2, 2005 - Kraton Polymers announced that Hurricane Katrina did not directly affect any of its operations. As a result of our global manufacturing network, we currently believe we will not have any significant supply disruptions. However, logistics could be an impediment for shipping of products or delivery of raw materials because of limited navigation in the affected region and the scarcity of fuel and transportation equipment.
We are monitoring these events closely and will advise if our supply situation changes.
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 press release includes “forward-looking statements” as that term is defined in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements 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 press release 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. Among these factors are changes in overall economic conditions, the cyclical nature of the chemical industry, changes in demand for our products, changes in inventories at our customers and distributors, technological and product development risks, availability and cost of raw materials, competitors’ actions, pricing and gross margin pressures, loss of key customers, order cancellations or reduced bookings, the timing and cost of planned capital expenditures, changes in manufacturing yields, control of costs and expenses, significant litigation, risks associated with acquisitions and dispositions, risks associated with our substantial leverage and restrictive covenants in our debt agreements, risks associated with our international operations, the threat or occurrence of international armed conflict and terrorist activities both in the United States and internationally, risks and costs associated with increased and new regulation of corporate governance and disclosure standards (including pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002), and risks involving environmental or other governmental regulation. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. We assume no obligation to update such information.
