GREAT LAKES AND OXYCHEM COMPLETE 50-50 ANTIMONY OXIDE JOINT VENTURE

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA—Great Lakes Chemical Corporation (NYSE:GLK) today announced that the company has completed a transaction that will merge its antimony business with OxyChem’s Laurel Industries unit in a 50-50 joint venture, GLCC Laurel, LLC.

The new company will develop, produce, and market antimony-based flame retardants, synergists, and catalysts. The transaction includes the antimony oxide and synergists manufacturing assets, intellectual property, and customer lists for both Great Lakes and Laurel. Great Lakes will act as the managing partner with responsibility for sales, customer service, technical support, credit, and logistics.

“We are moving quickly to integrate the businesses in the shortest time possible to take full advantage of the resulting synergies,” said Harold James, the joint venture’s general manager. “By bringing together complementary products and process technology, we are positioned to continue meeting our customers’ needs for high-quality, competitively-priced antimony oxide products.”

The joint venture includes the Great Lakes Timonox®, TMS®, and Trutint® antimony oxide flame retardants; Pyrobloc® sodium antimonate and zinc borate synergists; and Oncor®, Smokebloc®, and Ongard® smoke suppressants, as well as the Fireshield® and Thermoguard® antimony oxide-based products and PetCat® catalyst products marketed by Laurel.

Manufacturing will be consolidated into the existing Great Lakes antimony production facility in Reynosa, Mexico, which is ISO 9001:2000 certified. The Laurel manufacturing facility in LaPorte, Texas, is expected to close by the end of 2004.

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