At the start of 2006 Norit was forced to announce a very substantial price increase. At that time we explained that this historical high cost increases in energy, chemicals and coal made it impossible for us to continue to maintain our pricing levels by reducing our cost. It was our thoughts and intention that this substantial increase was only necessary for 2006.

Meanwhile, costs have continued to rise throughout 2006 (ref. Eurostat Industrial producer prices) with more than 6%. Also the prices of activated carbon specific raw materials continue to rise. On top of that our industry is facing stringent environmental and safety legislation. In 2007 we will be spending more than millions of Euros on environmental capital projects to comply with local rules and regulations. With these investments we ensure the safe and responsible continuation of supply from our production plants.

While past increases have helped we find ourselves forced to increase prices again substantially in 2007.We have attempted to fairly distribute the impact of this new increase where we have found our cost impacted most. Therefore not all our products are impacted equally.

Today we are announcing that we must introduce another price increase. This increase will be an average of 10% for all activated carbon products with immediate effect for all new orders shipped as of January 1st, 2007.

Norit and the activated carbon industry are facing challenging times. It is important for our industry to be financially viable as we look to invest in helping you meet your needs for the future. While this price increase over the past year has been necessary it assures our customers of consistent activated carbon supply and advancements in new technology in this important area of their business.