Cabot to close Hong Kong masterbatch plant March 31, move production to new Tianjin, China facility; Tianjin plant currently has capacity of 45 million tonnes

Alison Gallant

BOSTON , December 19, 2011 (press release) – Move strengthens Cabot's cost, technology position in Asia

Cabot Corp. CBT -3.64% is closing its Hong Kong masterbatch plant on March 31, 2012, and moving the production to its new facility in Tianjin, company officials announced today.

Starting in April 2012, all of Cabot's masterbatch product made in China will be produced in Tianjin.

Cabot's Tianjin masterbatch plant, which opened in September 2011, has a current capacity of 45KMT, which is large enough to supply the current demand of the plastics industry in Asia, as well as its expected near-term future growth.

Cabot designed its Tianjin site to be the premier black masterbatch and carbon black manufacturing facility in Asia. The masterbatch and carbon black operations are fully integrated, which creates strong competitive advantages through integrated economics, increased scale, and world-class process technology.

"We want to be the supplier of choice in China's plastics markets for masterbatch," said Patrick Prevost, Cabot president and chief executive officer. "Our operations in Tianjin give us important competitive advantages. Moving all of our China masterbatch production to Tianjin maximizes these advantages. The move allows us to be closer to our customers, and to deliver high-quality, cost-competitive masterbatch, using the most advanced process technologies in the industry. We're committed to helping our customers grow in China, and this action makes us a stronger supplier in this market."

Cabot produces masterbatch products for a broad range of uses in the plastics industry, such as key infrastructure and automotive applications. Typical end products include plastic moldings, pipes, cable jacketing, film, and much more.

Cabot's masterbatch is a performance material comprised of a polymer and carbon black mixture for use in a wide range of thermoplastic applications.

ABOUT CABOT CORPORATION

Cabot Corporation, headquartered in Boston, Mass., USA, is a global specialty chemical and performance materials company. Cabot's major products are carbon black, fumed silica, inkjet colorants, aerogel, and cesium formate drilling fluids. The company's website is: www.cabot-corp.com

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