BASF is in discussions regarding a potential merger of BASF Group’s oil and gas activities with Letter One’s oil and gas activities bundled in the DEA Group. BASF would hold the majority of the shares in the joint enterprise. An Initial Public Offering (IPO) of the joint enterprise would be an option in the medium term. The outcome of the discussions is open and there is no assurance that any transaction will be consummated.

BASF’s oil and gas activities are bundled in the Wintershall Group. Wintershall focuses on exploration and production in oil and gas-rich regions in Europe, North Africa, Russia, South America and the Middle East. Together with Gazprom, the company is also active in the transport of natural gas in Europe. For the full year 2016, net sales of the Oil & Gas segment of the BASF Group amounted to around €2.8 billion, EBITDA was around €1.6 billion and EBIT around €500 million.

BASF does not intend to make any additional comments on this matter at this time.

About Wintershall

Wintershall Holding GmbH, based in Kassel, Germany, is a wholly-owned subsidiary of BASF in Ludwigshafen. The company has been active in the extraction of natural resources for 120 years, and in the exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas for over 85 years. Wintershall focuses on selected core regions where the company has built up a high level of regional and technological expertise. These are Europe, Russia, North Africa, South America, and increasingly the Middle East region. The company wants to expand its business further with exploration and production, selected partnerships, innovation and technological competence. Wintershall employs about 2.000 staff worldwide from 50 nations and is now Germany’s largest internationally active crude oil and natural gas producer.

About BASF

At BASF, we create chemistry for a sustainable future. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. The approximately 114,000 employees in the BASF Group work on contributing to the success of our customers in nearly all sectors and almost every country in the world. Our portfolio is organized into five segments: Chemicals, Performance Products, Functional Materials & Solutions, Agricultural Solutions and Oil & Gas. BASF generated sales of about €58 billion in 2016. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchanges in Frankfurt (BAS), London (BFA) and Zurich (BAS).