DuPont Tate & Lyle Bio Products and Ashland Inc. expand renewable resource resin capabilities

ENVIREZ® resin line to use Susterra™ renewably-sourced propanediol
LOUDON, Tenn., and DUBLIN, Ohio, April 10, 2008 – In response to customer demand for renewably sourced resins, Ashland Composite Polymers announces an expansion of its ENVIREZ® renewable resource resin products. Certain ENVIREZ resins will now incorporate Susterra™ renewably-sourced propanediol (Bio-PDO™) manufactured by DuPont Tate & Lyle Bio Products. Ashland Composite Polymers is a business group of Ashland Performance Materials, a division of Ashland Inc. (NYSE: ASH).

Susterra renewably-sourced propanediol from DuPont Tate & Lyle Bio Products is a 100-percent renewably sourced ingredient made from corn glucose. ENVIREZ resins, developed by Ashland using patented technology and renewable ingredients, such as Susterra, provide composite fabricators with the first step to sustainable composites.

“As demand for green products has increased, so has demand for ENVIREZ resin. By incorporating Susterra, we are now able to expand the range of applications for ENVIREZ resins and offer a sustainable material option to a larger portion of our customer base,”said Jud Smith, vice president, Ashland Performance Materials, general manager Ashland Composite Polymers.

“We are proud to be associated with Ashland, a company that has a shared commitment to environmental sustainability. They are leading their industry by developing an innovative line of renewably sourced products that provide uncompromised performance while significantly reducing the amount of petroleum used and greenhouse gases emitted when compared to 100 percent petroleum-sourced materials,” said Steve Mirshak, DuPont Tate & Lyle Bio Products president.

ENVIREZ resin has become widely used to produce molded parts for the agricultural, marine and transportation industries. Ashland will utilize Susterra to expand offerings to these industries and provide additional resin solutions to the building and construction industry. ENVIREZ resin products offer quality performance while also reducing the environmental impact associated with traditional petrochemical-based resin systems.

Ashland Performance Materials, a division of Ashland Inc., is a worldwide manufacturer and supplier of specialty chemicals and customized services to the building and construction, packaging and converting, transportation, marine and metal casting industries. It is a technology leader in metal casting consumables and design services, unsaturated polyester and vinyl ester resins and gelcoats and highperformance adhesives and specialty resins.

Ashland Inc. (NYSE: ASH), a diversified, global chemical company, provides quality products, services and solutions to customers in more than 100 countries. A FORTUNE 500 company, it operates through four divisions: Ashland Performance Materials, Ashland Distribution, Valvoline and Ashland Water Technologies. To learn more about Ashland, visit www.ashland.com.

DuPont Tate & Lyle Bio Products is a joint venture between DuPont, a global science company, and Tate & Lyle, a world leader in corn, wheat and sugar derived ingredients. By bringing together the unrivaled track record of DuPont in the integration of biology, engineering and materials science, and the technical excellence of Tate & Lyle in fermentation of natural products, scientists and engineers from the joint venture have developed a process that uses corn instead of petroleum-based feedstocks to produce 1,3 propanediol, or Bio-PDO. DuPont Tate & Lyle Bio Products provides renewably sourced ingredients that do not compromise product performance. 

ENVIREZ® is a registered trademark of Ashland, Inc.
Susterra™ is a trademark of DuPont Tate & Lyle Bio Products. Learn more about Susterra®
FORTUNE 500 is a registered trademark of Time, Inc.