BDA has Advised Hercules on the Acquisition of the Specialty Surfactants Business of Dexter Chemical

Hercules Incorporated (NYSE:HPC) has completed the purchase of the specialty surfactants business of Dexter Chemical LLC. BDA acted as M&A adviser to Hercules on this transaction.

(PRWEB) August 31, 2007 -- Business Development Asia ("BDA") is pleased to announce that Hercules Incorporated has completed the purchase of the specialty surfactants business of Dexter Chemical LLC. Under terms of the agreement, Hercules is acquiring the business related to Dexter's product portfolio of phosphate ester surfactants sold under the Strodex® and Dextrol® trademarks.

Dexter is a leader in phosphate ester surfactants utilized in paints and coatings where the products are used to enhance gloss retention, promote surface wetting and improve color stability. Products have also been recently developed and optimized for use in low-VOC (volatile organic chemical) coatings formulations.

Commenting on the transaction, Craig Rogerson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Hercules, said, "This business is an excellent fit for Aqualon's Coatings Additives business. It will broaden Aqualon's existing portfolio of products for the paint industry and strengthen its overall market position."

Euan Rellie, co-founder and Managing Director of BDA, commented, "We're pleased to close our third transaction for Hercules and to reinforce our position as a clear leader in providing M&A advice to the international chemical industry."

Hercules manufactures and markets chemical specialties globally for making a variety of products for home, office and industrial markets. For more information, visit the company's website at www.herc.com.

A world leader in phosphate ester chemistry, Dexter Chemical has been serving the Paint & Coatings, Emulsion Polymerization and Textile & Garment Wet Processing industries for more than 50 years. For more information, visit the company's website at www.dexterchem.com.

Business Development Asia LLC was founded in 1996. BDA assists multinational corporate and financial sector clients to identify and execute acquisitions, divestments, JVs, restructuring and capital raising, in Asia and internationally. BDA is headquartered in New York with offices in London, Bahrain, Mumbai, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Seoul, and Tokyo. BDA employs 55 full-time professional staff across eight offices, supplemented by a team of senior advisors around the world. BDA's client list includes Air Products, Cadbury Schweppes, Celestica, DIC, Dow Chemical, DuPont, Ecolab, Godrej, Great Lakes, Hanjin Shipping, Huntsman, Inabata, Kimberly-Clark, Lear, Lubrizol, Mars, Molex, Morgan Stanley, Nalco, Parker Hannifin, Reuters, Rohm & Haas, Ryder, Siemens, SigmaKalon, Sumitomo Chemical, TATA Auto Components, Tenneco, Tredegar, Visteon, WR Grace, and the British Government. Further information on BDA can be found at www.bdallc.com.

BDA transaction team
Euan Rellie
Melissa Wong
Ben Kamarck

For more information on this transaction, please contact Euan Rellie in New York on 1 212 265 5300.

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