BASF plans switch to registered shares

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Proposed conversion brings benefits for shareholders and company,Voting to take place at annual meeting on April 29, 2010

Ludwigshafen, Germany – March 18,2010 - BASF SE plans to convert its bearer shares to registered shares. A proposal to this effect will be put to the shareholders at the Annual Meeting of BASF SE on April 29, 2010.

Registered shares offer benefits for shareholders and the company. They facilitate even better and more direct communication with shareholders and meet the wishes of many shareholders for easy registering and issuance of proxies for the Annual Meeting. The conversion will also generate savings, for example through the sending of invitations to the Annual Meeting directly to shareholders.

Unless they object, owners of registered shares will have their name and number of shares entered in the company’s share register.

The conversion will not have any affect on the legal position of shareholders recorded in the share register. Their stake in the company remains unchanged and their rights as shareholders will not be affected. Nor will the switch to registered shares limit or complicate the purchase or sale of BASF shares for shareholders.

If the annual meeting approves the proposal, the conversion of the 918.5 million BASF shares will take place on August 2, 2010. Shareholders will be informed by their custodian banks about the upcoming conversion of bearer shares and entry in the share register.

About BASF

BASF is the world’s leading chemical company: The Chemical Company. Its portfolio ranges from chemicals, plastics and performance products to agricultural products, fine chemicals as well as oil and gas. As a reliable partner BASF creates chemistry to help its customers in virtually all industries to be more successful. With its high-value products and intelligent solutions, BASF plays an important role in finding answers to global challenges such as climate protection, energy efficiency, nutrition and mobility. BASF posted sales of more than €50 billion in 2009 and had approximately 105,000 employees as of the end of the year. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchanges in Frankfurt (BAS), London (BFA) and Zurich (AN). Further information on BASF is available on the Internet at www.basf.com.

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