02/27/2008, Düsseldorf, Germany/Gulph Mills, Pa.
The Management Board of Henkel KGaA decided to undertake the divestiture of all or part of its stake in Ecolab Inc., St. Paul, Minnesota.
No final decision has been taken at this time as to the size, the timing and the method of any such divestiture, which would be carried out in accordance with the Stockholder's Agreement between Henkel and Ecolab.
Ecolab Inc., in which Henkel holds a 29.4 percent stake, reported sales of $5.47 billion for fiscal 2007. As of December 31, 2007 the market value of this interest amounted to approx. $3.723 billion (approx. 2.5 billion euros).
For more than 130 years, Henkel has been a leader with brands and technologies that make people's lives easier, better and more beautiful. Henkel operates in three business areas – Home Care, Personal Care, and Adhesives Technologies – and ranks among the Fortune Global 500 companies. In fiscal 2007, Henkel generated sales of 13.074 billion euros and operating profit of 1,344 million euros. Our 53,000 employees worldwide are dedicated to fulfilling our corporate claim, "A Brand like a Friend," and ensuring that people in more than 125 countries can trust in brands and technologies from Henkel.
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