BASF to invest Euro 6 bn in German chemical manufacturing site.

BASF SE has announced its plans to spend a total of at least Euro 6 billion on investments, upgrading and maintenance measures between 2016 and 2020 at the chemical manufacturing site in Ludwigshafen, Germany.

On October 21, 2015, company and employee representatives at BASF SE in Ludwigshafen signed a new site agreement, titled ‘Meeting the challenges of constant change together’, which applies to the approximately 36,000 employees of BASF SE at the site. It will run for five years (from January 1, 2016 until December 31, 2020) and follows on from the existing site agreement, which expires at the end of 2015. The company will continue to forgo forced redundancies for the duration of the agreement.

“Economic and social changes are occurring ever faster and are becoming less and less predictable. With the new site agreement, we are creating a framework that offers both flexibility and reliability and will enable the Ludwigshafen site to remain competitive – now and in the future. We rely on our team of dedicated and skilled employees and we will continue to substantially invest in the largest, integrated Verbund site of BASF Group in the coming years,” said Margret Suckale, member of the Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE.

Robert Oswald, head of the Works Council of BASF SE, commented, “Job security is highly valued and a decisive factor in motivating employees to actively support the constant change. With the new site agreement, we have been able to extend job security for employees. The company’s stated intent to continue vocational training on a comparable level as in the past and to foster the employability of its staff will also contribute to making the site fit for the future.”

Forward-looking investments and active portfolio management are fundamental to the competitiveness of BASF SE. Flexible forms of employment, especially in areas where capacity utilization and order levels can fluctuate considerably, will be maintained and further developed.

“The changes in the coming years will be very demanding for employees and managers, so they need to be flexible and prepared to take on new challenges. Job security and entrepreneurial flexibility go hand in hand,” said Dr Wolfgang Hapke, president, human resources at BASF.

BS