7 Mar 2006

Univar advances European growth strategy with further expansion in Central and Eastern Europe

Univar N.V. (Euronext Amsterdam: UNIVR), a world leader in chemical distribution, today announced the establishment of two new subsidiaries in the increasingly dynamic Eastern European region. The new businesses, Univar Czech s.r.o., located in Prague, and Univar Hungary Ltd., situated in Budapest, became officially operational on February 1, 2006, and are the latest developments in Univar’s planned growth in Europe.

This is the company’s next step in extending its presence in Central and Eastern Europe, and follows an earlier move which saw the establishment of distribution operations through Univar Poland Sp.zo.o. and its Mapol Sp.zo.o. business.

Heinrich Kluewer, Univar’s General Manager, Central & Eastern Europe (CEE), commented, “Through our new companies in the Czech Republic and Hungary, we will provide additional platforms for the expansion of our industry-focused chemical, food ingredients and industrial consumables businesses. This should lend itself to our deepening supplier relationships and attracting new ones, as well as providing local customers access to an alternative stream of products and brands through our global supplier network.”

Univar sees this growth as adding further value to the supply chain. “As a company, we have built a world-class sales and service organisation,” John Phillpotts, President - Univar Europe, explains. “This, coupled with our drive to maintain a high degree of professionalism and to be a leader within our industry in matters of safety, health and the environment, contributes to our goal of being the first choice distribution partner for chemical producers and the first choice in product supply and related services for customers.”

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Notes for editors

Univar

Univar N.V. (Euronext Amsterdam: UNIVR) is one of the world’s leading independent distributors of industrial chemicals and providers of related specialty services, operating throughout both North America and Europe. Univar endeavours to service its customer base, made up of some 250,000 industrial end-users, with a full portfolio of products. The majority are commodities that the company buys in bulk, then processes, blends and repacks to meet the diverse requirements of the industries we serve. Others are specialties - purchased pre-packaged and sold on a technical basis, usually under a manufacturer’s own brand.

As well as differentiating ourselves through our vast product offering, Univar also provides a number of related services, both to its customers and suppliers, such as blending, managing customer inventories, packaging, labeling, warehouse management, waste management, technical support and managing vendor reduction programs. Univar operates a network of 164 distribution centers, spread across the United States, Canada and 14 European countries.

In 2004, Univar generated net sales of USD.5.3 billion and operating income (EBIT) of USD 162.3 million. Univar has approximately 6,700 employees based throughout North America and Europe. The company’s registered office is in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, with administrative support offices in Bellevue, Washington, USA, and Bradford, England, UK. For more information, visit: www.univarcorp.com and www.univareurope.com.