NOVA Chemicals To Manufacture ARCEL Resin In Asia

Pittsburgh, PA — NOVA Chemicals Corporation recently announced that it has entered into a long-term agreement with Loyal Chemical Industrial Corporation to manufacture ARCEL® moldable foam resin near Shanghai, China. This agreement is a component of NOVA Chemicals' plan to expand manufacturing capacity for ARCEL, a one-of-a-kind expandable inter-polymer, to 100 million pounds (45 kilotonnes) annually by the end of 2006.

"We are pleased to establish this partnership with Loyal Chemical, a respected leader in Asia for expandable resin production," said Dan Nelson, NOVA Chemicals' Vice President of Specialty Foams. "This agreement will enable us to more effectively deliver the superb benefits of ARCEL to the rapidly growing, high-performance moldable foam market throughout Asia."

ARCEL resin combines the toughness of polyethylene and the processability of polystyrene to yield a uniquely resilient inter-polymer. ARCEL delivers value to the entire supply chain by reducing packaging size, which results in significant space and cube efficiency. "Our mission is to ensure that every OEM, contract manufacturer and supply partner around the world understands the overall cost benefits that ARCEL offers - the magic behind ARCEL's remarkable growth," said Nelson.

"Loyal Chemical is very pleased to partner with NOVA Chemicals, a leader in high-value styrenic polymers," said C.T. Liao, Chief Executive Officer of Loyal Chemical Industrial Corporation. "As China's largest expandable polystyrene producer, we look forward to introducing more Asian customers to ARCEL's industry-leading performance attributes."

Construction of the ARCEL resin manufacturing facility is underway and production is expected to commence in early 2006. ARCEL is currently produced at NOVA Chemicals' Beaver Valley manufacturing site (near Pittsburgh, PA), where a previously announced capacity expansion is underway. ARCEL resin is processed by customers in North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Australia and is available from NOVA Chemicals and its molding partners. ARCEL resin runs on standard expandable polystyrene (EPS) molding equipment, processes more easily than competitive materials and is recyclable in the polystyrene recycling stream.

SOURCES: NOVA Chemicals Corporation