DuPont and BASF Announce Settlement

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Jan 13, 2010, 11:00 ET

WILMINGTON, Del., and FLORHAM PARK, N.J., Jan. 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- DuPont (NYSE: DD) and BASF Plant Science announced they have reached an agreement on a patent infringement dispute.

In June 2009, DuPont and BASF filed suit against each other in U.S. Federal Court in the District of Delaware that sought to enforce intellectual property rights relating to biotechnology traits, including traits that provide tolerance to ALS herbicides.

DuPont and BASF have reached an agreement to cross-license patents and dismiss their claims and counterclaims against each other in both of the cases pending in Delaware. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

BASF Corporation, headquartered in Florham Park, N.J., is the North American affiliate of BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany. BASF has more than 15,000 employees in North America, and had sales of approximately $17.5 billion in 2008. For more information about BASF's North American operations, or to sign up to receive news releases by e-mail, visit www.basf.com/usa.

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 helps 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 has approximately 97,000 employees and posted sales of more than euro 62 billion in 2008. 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.

BASF consolidated its plant biotechnology activities in BASF Plant Science in 1998. Today, about 700 employees are working to optimize crops for more efficient agriculture, renewable raw materials and healthier nutrition for humans and animals. Projects include yield increase in staple crops, higher content of Omega-3s in oil crops for preventing cardiovascular diseases, and potatoes with optimized starch composition for industrial use. To find out more about BASF Plant Science, please see our internet website at: http://www.basf.com/biotechnology.

DuPont is a science-based products and services company. Founded in 1802, DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to a better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere. Operating in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture and food; building and construction; communications; and transportation.

SOURCE DuPont