Eliokem was founded in 2001, as a result of the divestiture of the specialty chemicals business of The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company of USA.

The management of Eliokem comprises the former management of the purchased business plus external non-executive advisers appointed by the majority shareholder AXA Private Equity. The Eliokem executive managers are also shareholders. They average more than 25 years experience with these businesses.

Eliokem is headquartered in Villejust, near Paris, France. It serves its customers in more than 90 countries through four manufacturing sites and operating companies. The first two are located at the original Goodyear sites in France and USA. The third was built by Eliokem on a greenfield site in Ningbo in China in 2004. The fourth, Valia in India, was acquired by Eliokem in February, 2008. The expansions in Asia through new plants, products and businesses augur well for all the stakeholders of Eliokem as they have been timed and placed in the two largest motors of industrial growth in the 21st century.

The LE HAVRE PLANT (France) is ideally located near one of the main European ports. The port of Le Havre is located on the world's busiest sea trade route and is linked by motorway to Paris and the rest of Europe by daily air services to London, Amsterdam and Brussels - an additional advantage for our many visitors.

This convenient location provides unrivalled advantages for the group's logistic department which is also located on the site:

• The proximity of the port, with regular sailings for the United States and the Far East, enables a flexible delivery service for these far-off customers
• The road infrastructure, which is still being extended, enables very fast delivery to European customers

Our logistic department has a close relation with a number of efficient haulage companies who provide a high level of service to match the high performance of the products.

Eliokem places great emphasis on exports and markets its goods in all five continents. We have experience in 90 different countries and have a close relationship with our agents, enabling us to work with our customers to provide logistic services to suit their requirements.

Finally, we keep in close contact with official organizations to monitor regulations to ensure that we always conform to the requirements of the countries to which we dispatch our products.

Our Le Havre plant is a multipurpose plant manufacturing, Pliolite^®, Plioway^® dry resins, Pliotec^® latex, Chemigum^® and Sunigum^® elastomers, Wingstay^® antioxidants, Pliocord^® and Chemigum^® latex.

The AKRON PLANT (Ohio, USA) is located 35 miles from Cleveland in Akron Ohio. This area combines the presence of an existing plastic, coatings and rubber skilled workforce with many recognized centers of educational excellence. The Midwest Region has a high concentration of the industries Eliokem serves and the Universities in the area contribute to the innovation and training of future talents.

The Akron plant manufactures Pliolite^®, Pliotone^® dry resins, and Pliotec^® latex. The plant is highly automated and has batch and semi-continuous polymerization capabilities. Eliokem has implemented a system of continuous improvement in manufacturing operations over the past decade, which combined with capital investments to increase flexibility, capacity and productivity, have created a solid base for profitable growth. The facility is strategically located near the distribution channel, to better serve its customer base.

The NINGBO PLANT (China) is located in The Ningbo Economic & Technical Development Zone (NETD), one of China's most dynamic development regions, near Shanghai.

The Ningbo Plant is specifically designed for the protection of Wingstay^® phenolic antioxidants. It enables Eliokem to maintain a key position in Asia for ABS plastic and synthetic rubber stabilization and the protection of articles based on natural rubber latex.

The VALIA PLANT (India) is located in the western state of Gujarat, 300 kms north of the financial capital Mumbai. Situated in the midst of a major petrochemical zone bordering the Arabian Sea, Valia is close to the sources of monomers and to maritime ports. It was set up in 1992 under technology licensed from The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company of USA. Valia and Le Havre plants share the same technological heritage but specialize in different product families to complement Eliokem offerings to the Rubber & Latex Industries.

Valia makes Chemigum^® Nitrile Rubber & Polyblends (NBR/PVC) and Pliolite^® HSR Reinforcing Resins (high styrene-rubber masterbatch) for the rubber industry; and Chemigum^® Nitrile and Pliolite SB Latices for the latex industry. Technical services to customers are provided by the on-site R&D center. The Valia facilities spearhead Eliokem offer to rubber & latex industries worldwide Infrastructure of the Valia plant was recently geared to double the capacity in readiness for the growing demand for its products in the coming years, especially in Asia.