BASF now a European company
14 January 2008The conversion of BASF Aktiengesellschaft into a European Company (Societas Europaea) was officially completed on January 14, 2008, with the entry of the name in the commercial register of the Ludwigshafen district court. As of that date, the company's name is BASF SE. The conversion process took less than twelve months.
The annual meeting approved the conversion on April 26, 2007, and the employee participation agreement was reached with employee representatives in mid-November 2007. The newly constituted supervisory board of BASF SE appointed the members of the board of executive directors of BASF SE on December 5, 2007. The new commercial register number is HRB 6000. At a ceremony at the Ludwigshafen district court, Eggert Voscherau, vice chairman of the board of executive directors of BASF SE, thanked everyone involved in the conversion process: ‘This is a historic day for BASF and its employees. We are the first company in our industry to embody the idea of Europe through its legal form. At the same time, we are strengthening the involvement of European employees and improving our corporate governance.' The supervisory board of BASF consists of twelve members: six shareholder representatives and six employee representatives. The first supervisory board will govern until the annual meeting 2009. Also with immediate effect, BASF SE have established a new European works council (BASF Europa Betriebsrat) consisting of 23 members from twelve European countries. The headquarters and chief administrative offices of BASF SE will remain in Ludwigshafen.
