Evonik Cyro Arkansas Plant Receives OSHA Region VI’s Top Safety Award
Osceola Facility Cited For Continually Maintaining Superior Safety Standards

OSCEOLA, Ark., May 19, 2009 – Evonik Cyro’s Osceola, Arkansas, plant has received the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Region VI’s prestigious “Star of Excellence” award for going above and beyond the world-class safety standards set by the agency with injury/illness rates at least 90% below industry counterparts.

“This is an extremely impressive achievement for our employees at Osceola,” said John Rolando, president of Evonik Cyro. “It shows the continuous dedication our employees at Osceola and elsewhere have to safety. To be recognized as a ‘Star of Excellence’ is an extraordinary achievement. I applaud their efforts.”

The Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP) is a cooperative effort between OSHA, industry and labor to recognize and promote effective safety and health practices in the workplace that exceed the basic OSHA safety and health requirements. VPP’s program recognizes participants with total case incidence rates significantly below the Bureau of Labor’s national average.

"We have a very strong safety culture," said Jim Bunn, manager of Evonik Cyro’s Osceola plant, which produces acrylic sheet and molding compounds. "Throughout our company, safety is a core business value. It is a continuous, ongoing concern.”

Bunn added that taking a proactive approach to addressing what could potentially become safety and health issues is a key driver. “We are committed to provide an injury-free workplace for our employees and our contractors,” said Bunn. “Evonik Cyro employees daily demonstrate their commitment to maintaining the highest safety standards. We will continue to exhibit the dedication and vigilance.”

Only about a quarter of the qualified plants in OSHA’s Region VI, which includes Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico and Oklahoma received The Star of Excellence award. Of the nearly 8 million worksites in the United States, only about 2,000 are considered VPP sites.

Last year, Quality Systems Registrars, Inc. of Sterling, Virginia – a leading independent global auditing firm - commended Evonik Cyro’s Osceola plant for its continuous improvement efforts in environmental, health, safety and security performance and certified the Osceola facility for the American Chemistry Council’s (ACC)’s RC 14001 program.

Company Information
Evonik Industries is the creative industrial group from Germany which operates in three business areas: Chemicals, Energy and Real Estate. Evonik is a global leader in specialty chemicals, an expert in power generation from hard coal and renewable energies, and one of the largest private residential real estate companies in Germany. Our strengths are creativity, specialization, continuous self-renewal, and reliability. Evonik is active in over 100 countries around the world. In its fiscal year 2008 about 41,000 employees generated sales of about Euro 15.9 billion and an operating profit (EBITDA) of more than Euro 2.2 billion.

Disclaimer
In so far as forecasts or expectations are expressed in this press release or where our statements concern the future, these forecasts, expectations or statements may involve known or unknown risks and uncertainties. Actual results or developments may vary, depending on changes in the operating environment. Neither Evonik Industries AG nor its group companies assume any obligation to update the forecasts, expectations or statements contained in this release.

For more information, contact:
Mike Sheridan
Evonik Degussa Corporation
Tel: 973-541-8812