Cognis appoints new CFO: Klaus Edelmann to be succeeded by Marco Panichi

08-27-2009: Klaus Edelmann will leave the position of Chief Financial Officer (CFO) in the Management Board of specialty chemicals supplier Cognis on October 1, 2009, and become a member of the supervisory board. His designated successor as CFO is Marco Panichi. This appointment will be officially decided by the supervisory board at its next meeting in September.

Klaus Edelmann (born 1943) has been CFO of Cognis since November 2006. Under his leadership, the company’s financing structure and liquidity position have been significantly improved and its debt has been reduced. His contribution to the realignment of the company’s portfolio and the extensive initiatives to optimize cost structures and efficiency have been instrumental in helping Cognis to weather the current tough economic times successfully. Edelmann will continue to serve the company as a member of the supervisory board, and will advise the owners in a consulting capacity.

Marco Panichi (born 1966) started his career with Henkel in 1997, and has been with Cognis since the company started trading in 1999. As head of Corporate Development from 2002 to 2005, he made a major contribution to the implementation of strategy, particularly the decision to focus on Cognis’ core businesses. From 2006 until the end of 2008, Panichi was based in Malaysia as CFO of the Cognis Oleochemical global joint venture, with responsibility for all administrative functions. He helped the joint venture to become more independent, and played a significant role in its subsequent sale. Panichi is currently Group Vice President of Corporate Controlling and Development at Cognis GmbH, reporting directly to Klaus Edelmann.