Albemarle to Increase Prices of MAGNIFIN(R) Magnesium Hydroxide Flame Retardants

BATON ROUGE, La., May 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Leading global flame retardants maker Albemarle Corporation will increase the prices for its MAGNIFIN magnesium hydroxide (MDH) flame retardants up to 10 percent, effective globally on all shipments made on or after July 1, 2008, or as contracts allow. The increases are needed to help offset the rapidly escalating energy prices and increased raw material costs required to manufacture these products.

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Albemarle is a leading manufacturer and marketer of MDH flame retardants for wire & cable and other polymer applications, and has leading market positions in wire & cable applications with its high-purity MAGNIFIN MDH and MARTINAL(R) aluminum trihydrate flame retardants. Plastics compounders and polymer manufacturers use Albemarle’s MAGNIFIN products and technical services to add life-saving properties to wire & cable, electrical and electronic parts, and construction materials such as flooring, roofing and insulating foams. MAGNIFIN flame retardants are part of Albemarle’s Polymer Additives business segment.

Albemarle Corporation, headquartered in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, is a leading global developer, manufacturer and marketer of highly engineered specialty chemicals for consumer electronics; petroleum and petrochemical processing; transportation and industrial products; pharmaceuticals; agricultural products; and construction and packaging materials. The Company operates in three business segments-Polymer Additives, Catalysts and Fine Chemicals, and serves customers in approximately 100 countries. Learn more about Albemarle at http://www.albemarle.com/.

“Safe Harbor” Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Statements in this press release regarding Albemarle Corporation’s business which are not historical facts are “forward-looking statements” that involve risks and uncertainties. For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see “Risk Factors” in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K.

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Albemarle Corporation

CONTACT: Media: Stephanie Dixon, +1-225-388-7904,Stephanie_Dixon@albemarle.com, Rene Milligan, +1-225-388-7106,Rene_Milligan@albemarle.com, or Investor Relations: Sandra Rodriguez,+1-225-388-7654, Sandra_Rodriguez@albemarle.com, all of Albemarle Corporation

Web site: http://www.albemarle.com/