BASF to establish new shared service center for finance in Montevideo, Uruguay

FLORHAM PARK, N.J., May 8, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- BASF is establishing a new shared service center for finance in Montevideo, Uruguay. BASF Services Americas S.A. will provide finance services to BASF subsidiaries and affiliates in more than 20 countries in North, Central and South America.

It will allow BASF to bring together its two current finance platforms in North and South America to have a single finance shared services center for the Americas.

The shared service center for the Americas builds on the successful implementation of other BASF finance shared services models in Berlin, Germany, for its Group companies in Europe, and in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, for its Asia Pacific companies.

"With this intra-regional integration of finance services we continue on our strategic path to combine our strengths and to add value as one company, building on our global system and process landscape," said Hans Engel, CFO of BASF SE and Chairman and CEO of BASF Corporation. "By bundling services and harmonizing processes we further strengthen BASF's competitiveness in North and South America."

Montevideo was chosen as the location due to the country's stable economic environment and its educated workforce which has the necessary financial and language skills, most importantly English, Spanish and Portuguese.

The shared service center for the Americas will be fully operational in 2016, and will employ about 320 personnel.

"The services sector is an important contributor to Uruguay's GDP at 60 percent. We are pleased to have BASF, the industry leader, establish its Americas finance services center here," said Andres Pelaez, Executive Director from Uruguay XXI, Government Institute of Investment Promotion and Exports of Goods and Services.

The decision will result in the reduction of approximately 200 finance positions in North America, mainly in the United States, and about 120 positions in Brazil. These reductions will be completed by the middle of 2016.

BASF has approximately 23,000 employees in the Americas – 17,000 are in North America and 6,000 in South America. In 2013, sales by location of company in North America (includes Central America) and South America (reported together with Africa and the Middle East) were €14.6 billion and €4.4 billion respectively.

BASF - The Chemical Company

BASF Corporation, headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, is the North American affiliate of BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany. BASF has nearly 17,000 employees in North America, and had sales of $19.3 billion in 2013. For more information about BASF's North American operations, visit www.basf.us.

BASF is the world's leading chemical company: The Chemical Company. Its portfolio ranges from chemicals, plastics, performance products and crop protection products to oil and gas. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. Through science and innovation, we enable our customers in nearly every industry to meet the current and future needs of society. Our products and solutions contribute to conserving resources, ensuring nutrition and improving quality of life. We have summed up this contribution in our corporate purpose: We create chemistry for a sustainable future. BASF had sales of about €74 billion in 2013 and over 112,000 employees as of the end of the year. Further information on BASF is available on the Internet at www.basf.com.

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SOURCE BASF Corporation